Life Like No Other
by Gollum4077
Summary: AJ Xavier-Walsh loves life. But when she meets a strange pair of red-head twins and receives a most unusual letter; the world of her and her family is about to turn upside-down.
1. Alphabetical Arrivals

**Life Like No Other**

**A/N: Welcome, earthlings! As per usual, I'm going to try and keep as true to the books as possible, age and date-wise (oh alright, plus a bit of creative licence).**

**Disclaimer: The usual. Don't own the HP universe. Leaving it with JK. Only own my OC's.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Alphabetical Arrivals**

_"You're off to Great Places!  
Today is your day!  
Your mountain is waiting,  
So... get on your way!"  
__Dr Seuss (Oh, The Places You'll Go!)_

* * *

It was absolute; eleven year-old AJ loved the summer holidays. Two months of no school dedicated to travelling, visiting family, books, movies and playing football, just like any other kid would do. It was from all these activities that AJ found joy in her favourite hobby of all time; exploring. The outdoors fascinated her to no end; ever since she could remember, she'd spent many a day on fantastical "expeditions" wherever she was living. Her latest adventure was England. Since relocating with her family early in the summer, AJ had spent generous amounts of time discovering all there was to know about her new home.

One particular afternoon, the adventurous girl found herself alone and content in one of her new favourite sunny spots, a grassy hill next to a fruit orchard that overlooked the Devon County village of Ottery St. Catchpole. It was a nice town, AJ had decided; a bit greener than Cardiff city, and cooler than Barcelona, but nice enough. From the moment her glinting hazel eyes had set sight on the rolling hills and bubbling creeks, she knew they had chosen a good town. Excellent view aside, AJ laid back and returned to the Dr Seuss book she was reading, a box of animal crackers sitting close by her side. Impatiently, she brushed strands of short auburn hair out of her face as the wind picked up, and kept on with Dr Seuss.

* * *

AJ didn't know how much time had passed; she was so engrossed in her book, when out of nowhere, she heard a hollow whistling, followed by a loud THUMP! She started in alarm, nearly tearing her book in two. Rolling over, AJ's eyes found the strange object that had landed only a few feet from her. It was a large crimson ball, around the size of a football, but with three large dents in it. As AJ got up to inspect it, she noticed it looked very hard and solid, but very worn and battered. She picked up the strange ball and tapped on it; it felt and sounded very hollow indeed. How strange, AJ thought. She had never seen any ball like this before.

'Scuse me?'

The hesitant voice came out of nowhere. AJ spun on the spot and came face to face with a lean young boy with a shock of flaming red hair. He was at least a head taller than AJ, who was well below average height, but looked of a similar age. His freckled face, soft brown eyes, straight nose and smiling mouth gave him a rather friendly and easy image, even down to his rather plain clothes; a light green t-shirt, faded blue jeans and dirty grey sneakers.

'Sorry, it appears you have our ball.' he said. There was a moment of silence as AJ processed the sentence. She was unsure, however, why the boy said "our", when he was clearly the only one around.

AJ fumbled with the strange crimson ball, then looked up at the boy again. 'This is yours?' she asked.

The boy grinned and nodded. 'Yeah. D'you mind?' He nodded at the ball still in AJ's hands, which she quickly threw back to him. Catching it with ease, he mumbled a thanks and gave her a curious look.

'Funny, I've never seen you around here before. Do you live in Ottery?'

AJ nodded. 'Yeah, you know the main town?' she said, pointing in the village's direction. 'I live at Old Cribbin's Crossing. It's sort of near the Otter River. Where do you live?' she asked. The boy pointed in the opposite direction, out past the fruit orchards. AJ's keen eyes followed.

'About two miles the other way, sort've near the town.' he replied vaguely. AJ thought that a little strange; she hadn't heard of anyone living out past the orchards, she thought it was just nothing but grass. Maybe his family were farmers. The boy stared at her a bit longer, curiosity still clear in his brown eyes.

'So, what're you doing up here alone?'

'Just reading and stuff.' AJ shrugged. 'You?'

'Playing Quidditch with my brothers.' the boy answered automatically. A sudden look of horror crossed his face and he clapped a hand over his mouth as he realised his potential stupidity.

'What's Quidditch?' AJ inquired. The boy's jaw dropped.

'You-you don't know what Quidditch is?' he exclaimed, dumbfounded.

'Is it like basketball?' AJ guessed.

The boy fumbled with the ball nervously. 'Um, well…not really, I mean… what did you say your name was again?'

AJ quirked an eyebrow. 'I didn't. But people call me AJ.' she replied cautiously.

The boy mirrored her expression. 'AJ?'

'_Si_.' she replied in Spanish. She scrunched up her face in annoyance. 'Um, I mean, yes. What's your name?'

The boy grinned. 'I'm-'

'FRED! There you are! Charlie wondered where you'd gotten to!' another voice called from up the hill. AJ's jaw dropped at the sight of the newcomer; it was another boy, a boy who looked exactly the same as the boy she was talking to. Same fiery red hair, same freckles, nose, brown eyes, mouth, clothes, everything! AJ also noticed that he was holding a sleek wooden broom. She blinked to make sure she wasn't seeing things, and gawked as the second boy noticed her for the first time.

.

'Hello there.' he greeted cheerily. 'Who's this?'

'This is AJ. She lives not far from here.' the first boy answered. AJ blinked again to check she was still sane.

'Wait, wait, wait! There are two of you?' she exclaimed. The boys looked at each other and burst into a fit of laughter, much to AJ's confusion.

'Well yeah, that's kind of the point when you're a twin!' one of them laughed. AJ wanted to slap herself for being so slow.

'So, you're twins?' she repeated. The boys gave duplicate smiles in response.

'Identical.' they chorused.

'Right down to the last freckle.'

'Even Mum can't tell us apart. She's hopeless!'

AJ nodded, still curious to find out more. 'Okay. So, what are your names?'

The boy on the left answered first. 'Well, I was _going_ to tell you before my brother here interrupted. I'm Fred Weasley. And this here-'

'Is George Weasley. Nice to meet you…AJ, was it?'

'AJ Xavier-Walsh.' she said more confidently. The twins shared a glance, then turned back at AJ.

'Some name you got there.' said Fred. Or, no- wait, was it George? AJ had forgotten already.

'It's long enough without the "AJ", and all my middle names.'

'What's the AJ stand for?' George asked.

AJ replied automatically, 'Not telling.'

'Why not?' demanded George.

'Is it too embarrassing?' Fred teased.

'No!' exclaimed AJ defensively. It's just… really long- that's all.'

'How long?' the twins asked.

'Most letters of the alphabet, long enough I guess.' AJ confirmed, with a hint of pride. Despite the ridiculous length of her full name, she knew no one else who could rival it.

One of the twins gave a low whistle. 'Wow. It must be some name.'

'You sure you don't wanna tell us?' said the other twin.

'No.' AJ replied firmly. 'It's fun to make people guess. How old are you?' turning the conversation back on them.

The boys cracked their identical twin grins again. 'Eleven.' they answered.

AJ smiled brightly. 'Really? Me too!' Fred and George both raised their eyebrows in surprise.

'Birthday?' AJ demanded before the boys could ask.

'April first. You?' they replied.

'June first!' she exclaimed excitedly. 'Weird, huh?'

'I reckon.' said Fred.

'Two month's difference.' added George.

'That's pretty cool.' finished AJ.

The three of them looked at each other, very pleased with how easily they were getting along. After a while, AJ noticed something out of place.

'What's with the broom? Were you sweeping the grass to play basketball or something?' she asked George. The boy looked confused.

'What's baske-' but before he could finish his reply, Fred cut him off.

'No! Our Mum was making us do chores when we wanted play outside. So we tried to combine the two.' he explained in in one breath. George stared at his twin, catching on in an instant.

'Yeah. Keeps things interesting.' he added. AJ nodded, unsure whether to believe them or not. But she didn't press it. Before she could continue the conversation, a distant, but firm male voice shouted from a distance.

.

'FRED! GEORGE! GET YOUR IDENTICAL TWIN ARSES BACK HERE NOW! WE WAN TO FINISH THIS GAME SOMETIME TODAY, THANK YOU!'

All three of them started and looked over to the next hill, where a much taller boy was waving his arms high above his head. Fred and George gave AJ apologetic smiles.

'Ah, sorry. That's our brother, Charlie.' Fred exclaimed with a slight chuckle.

'Yeah, he's probably ready to kill us for taking ages to find this old thing.' George added, pointing to the battered red ball with an unashamed grin.

AJ nodded. 'That's okay. I should go soon anyway.' She went to put her book and cracker-box in her rucksack, but kept her eyes on the twins in case they disappeared suddenly. 'Will I see you again maybe?' they shrugged.

'Who knows?'

'Chances are.'

'Try and find me next week. We could go exploring or something.' AJ suggested. Maybe they could even be friends, she thought. She wouldn't mind that, after all, she still didn't know many children her own age in town.

'We might just see you around then.' Fred said, with George nodding in agreement.

AJ waved in goodbye as they set off down the hill.

'Adiós! Nos vemos otra vez!' she called.

The twins grinned at AJ's enthusiastic use of Spanish. 'See ya AJ!' they chorused, before disappearing from sight. AJ decided to make her own way home as the afternoon drifted by, so her parents didn't send out a search party for her. Things couldn't have been better, she had moved to a fantastic new home, and she'd just made two new friends- twins no less! She had no idea what else lay in store for her, but with Fred and George, it was bound to be exciting.

* * *

**Reviews are like hugs.  
G.**


	2. Books and Bizarreness

**Chapter 2: Books and Bizarreness**

_"Oh the places you'll go!_

_There is fun to be done!_

_There are points to be scored. There are games to be won._

_And the magical things you can do with that ball will make you the winning-est winner of all."_

_Dr Seuss (Oh, The Places You'll Go!)_

* * *

_**One Week Later…**_

Despite her eager nature and passion for discovering new places, AJ Xavier-Walsh was still a creature of habit. Today, she sat at her spot on the hill opposite the orchard; a Dr. Seuss book in hand, with a box of crackers on the side. In the peacefulness of the day, there was no one to disturb her, so AJ began to read her story aloud:  
'"_So be sure when you step, Step with care and great tact. And remember that life's A Great Balancing Act. And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed! (98 and ¾ percent guaranteed) Kid, you'll move mountains._"' she recited with enthusiasm. "_Oh, The Places You'll Go"_ was one of her favourite Dr. Seuss books. Completely silly of course, but AJ couldn't help but love all that whimsical nonsense.

'Talking to yourself about moving mountains? Quite a mad sign, wouldn't you agree George?' teased a cheeky voice from behind her. AJ's smile widened; she recognised that voice. She rolled herself over as a second voice continued.

'I do indeed Fred. The girl must be delirious!' was the identical reply. Those voices could only belong to two people, exactly alike, AJ thought. She turned to see the gangly frames of the Weasley twins standing a few metres away with corresponding smirks on their freckled faces. This time, the only difference between them was the colour of their stripy t-shirts; one was red and white, the other blue and white. AJ leaned on her elbows and looked up at them defiantly.

'I'm not mad you know. I just like reading nonsense books. Hello to you too by the way.' she added.

'Hello AJ!' they chorused. AJ laughed.

'I don't think I'm ever going to get used to that,' she sighed dramatically.

'You will.' they said together.

AJ's eyes went from one twin to the other, her mind bursting with the obvious, painstakingly embarrassing question. 'Sorry, which one of you is which again?' she blurted out. The twins grinned ecstatically at each other in triumph, causing AJ's face to turn pink.

'It's alright AJ. I'm George.' confirmed the one in blue, raising his hand.

'Okay, George in blue.' said AJ uncertainly.

The other twin waved his hand too. 'And I'm Fred.' he stated.

'Fred in red.' AJ replied. 'Hey, that rhymes!' she remarked excitedly.

'And you're AJ.' Fred continued.

'AJ in yellow.' George announced, playing along too. AJ meekly fiddled with a loose thread on her yellow floral shirt.

'Oh, okay, okay. Sorry.' AJ apologised. 'It _is _confusing you know.'

Fred and George laughed. 'We know!' they exclaimed gleefully. AJ just poked her tongue out in response. She noticed that this time, the brothers carried no unusual objects with them.

'So, no brooms and balls today then?'

The twins grinned. 'Nope. We're done from chores for now.' Fred-in-red explained.

'It helps to get as far away as possible, so we don't have to do any more.' George-in-blue added on. AJ shook her head in slight disbelief. She'd gone to school with a pair of twins in Spain; the girls' personalities were practically polar opposites, but they still managed to know what the other was thinking. AJ also recalled her fraternal twin and triplet cousins. They all had their own personality traits too, but being so close, you'd think the siblings shared one mind as well. This seemed to be the case with the Weasleys. Just another rare thing she wouldn't understand. She sat down, indicating for the twins to do the same.

'So that's what you're doing here. Escaping duties?' she teased. The boys simultaneously shrugged as they plonked themselves onto the grass.

'Not that it matters, our brothers are all back at home, so no harm done.'

'How many brothers do you have?' AJ inquired.

'Five,' they answered. 'including him.' both said, pointing to each other.

'Whoa!' AJ shouted in surprise. 'Five brothers? Don't you have any sisters?' she asked.

'Only one- Ginny. But she's the youngest. We're the fourth-'

'-and fifth in the family.'

'So you have six siblings? That's insane!' AJ exclaimed.' And I thought my family was big.'

'How many siblings have you got?' asked Fred.

AJ looked down shyly. 'Well, one brother; half-brother really.' she replied sheepishly. The twins snorted.

'What? That's it?'

'I didn't mean siblings! My extended family's huge!' AJ defended. Fred and George stopped laughing.

'Yeah, well, same here.'

'But we'll believe you.'

'Whatever.' AJ muttered. She fidgeted with her book, before picking up her box of biscuits.

.

'Want a cracker?' she offered.

'Yeah!'

'Sure!' the twins replied enthusiastically reaching for the box. They took two each, with AJ taking some for herself.

'Fanks.' they answered with full mouths.

* * *

Over their animal crackers, the three children began to talk; about how Fred and George had always lived in the same home, as opposed to AJ, who'd moved from Wales to Spain to Cyprus, back to Spain, around Wales again, and then to England. They exchanged facts about their families, with Fred and George naming all their siblings, how they all went to the same school, though Bill, the oldest had just graduated. The twins explained how they were the next ones in the family to start their 'new' school, but when AJ asked them what school they went to, they tried to change the subject, and asking AJ about what school was like, which they seemed to take great interest in. Their hesitation confused AJ; she remembered they'd done that once before the first time they met. While they chatted about everything they could, the twins seemed to be sharing similar thoughts, constantly glancing at each other with wary eyes. Finally, after around half an hour, they decided to go in for the plunge.

'Hey AJ?' George started.

'Yes?' AJ replied.

'Have you… ever been…?'

George looked to Fred to help him continue. His twin obliged with false confidence.

'What George means to say is, well, it might seem like a really weird question, but- um…'

'What? What is it?' she asked in anticipation. Fred and George looked at each other nervously; there was no turning back now for them now.

Fred continued. 'Have you ever been able to do things, little things that seem…I don't know- not normal?'

'Like weird little actions that you can't explain?' George added. 'When you're really angry or upset or something? We're just wondering, you know, out of standard curiosity and stuff.' he finished hastily. There was a pregnant pause as the twins waited to see if they were going to regret their words or not. To their surprise, AJ looked thoughtful.

'Actually, now that you mention it; when I'm down at the creek, I can make pebbles and sticks float, not just on water, but in the air. And I can make them move when I want...'

'You can?' the twins chorused in disbelief. They eagerly motioned for AJ to continue.

'Yeah, and the water can make patterns when I want it to. And, whenever anyone makes me mad or something, really weird stuff happens. Like windows shutting or things breaking….' she recounted, uncertain as to whether she was scared or relieved that the twins seemed to know something about her abilities. But what would they think of her? 'But my family never gets hurt or anything.' she quickly added, 'Just people from school I don't like.' It was true; one time in 3rd grade, Terry Markesan had made fun of her accent in the middle of the playground, and somehow he ended up being stuck on the roof of the school, clinging to a bench she'd levitated. She wasn't one to recount strange events like that, but now that Fred and George had prompted her, she suddenly found herself blurting out more.'…and I can go on swing-sets really high, and when I fall, I land on my feet, and I'm fine! It's weird, like I'm flying, but I can't help it! I mean…' she paused mid-sentence, giving the twins a suspicious look. 'Wait. Why did you ask me if I could do all that?'

.

Fred and George gawked as they took a moment to take everything in. What AJ had said was starting to make perfect sense! She'd basically displayed all the signs that children like them showed around their age. All their family, and themselves had done similar things, but they knew it was normal.

'We've, err, been surveying kids in the area aged eleven to see if they can all do magic tricks.' George explained.

'Yeah, just curious really.' Fred shrugged casually.

'Liars.' said AJ determinedly. 'Why did you ask me? Can you do it too?' she asked. In her hazel eyes, there was a glint of hope, hope that she wasn't just one nutcase.

Fred rubbed his neck. 'Actually it's kinda normal. For people like us you see.'

'What do you mean, people like-'

'Cause we can do it too.' George interrupted. 'All of our family, well, most of them can do those sorts of things too.' he explained. AJ's face lit up in further anticipation.

'Really?' So, I'm not a freak? Cause that's what the kids at school called me.' AJ said.

The twins looked horrified. 'Merlin no!' they shouted. AJ gave them a funny look. She'd never heard anyone say "Merlin" like that.

'No, you're not a freak.' Fred assured.

'At least not a complete freak.' George added cheekily. 'You _were_ talking to yourself before.'

'Was not! I was reading!' AJ retorted.

'Just pulling your leg AJ.' George chuckled.

'But AJ, can anyone else in your family do what you can?' Fred asked more seriously. AJ thought, she shook her head.  
.

'No. They don't know. I- I don't know how to tell them. I don't even know _how_ I'm doing it! It's just so hard to explain!' she exclaimed angrily, twirling a strand of short hair around her finger. Fred and George gave her a somewhat pitiful look and both put a reassuring hand on AJ's shoulders. Boy, she must have had it tough, they thought. It was just her.

'You know what AJ?' Fred said excitedly.

'I think we can explain.' George whispered excitedly.

'Explain what?' AJ whispered back, desperate for an answer. Fred and George looked at each other, nodding in agreement.

'AJ, we think…'

'…that you might be…'

They both took a deep breath.

'A witch.' they finished together. AJ scrunched up her face.

'A witch.' AJ murmured uncertainly. Her expression was hard to read, but her eyes darted from boy to boy, as if she was questioning their sanity. 'A witch?' she exclaimed a little louder, 'That's not a nice thing to say!' she scolded.

Both Fred and George were unsure of what else to say. Their improvisation basin had suddenly run dry. They exchanged panicked looks.

'No, we don't mean _that_ kind of witch!' Fred shouted.

'Not like the witches you've heard about!' reasoned George.

But AJ wasn't so easily swayed. These boys who she'd come to be friends with were now calling her a witch; just because she had a few abnormal quirks. 'What are you one about?' she demanded. 'A different kind of witch? Do I _look_ like a witch to you?' In her exasperation, AJ stood up and looked down at the boys, somewhere between offended and just plain hurt.

Fred and George groaned; this was exactly the type of situation they had hoped to avoid.

'No! AJ listen to us! Please!' George pleaded, standing to face AJ more directly, which Fred also did.

'You said you make things happen! Things no one else can do! We can do them too! So can our family!'

'We're wizards AJ!' they shouted triumphantly.

'AJ shook her head in disbelief. 'Okay- hang on, stop. You're telling me just because I can make water and sticks move, and cups smash without touching them, I'm a witch?'

'Yeah, I know it's hard to believe, but we think you're one of us!' cried George.

'How can I believe you? How do I know this isn't some stupid prank?' questioned AJ doubtfully. That struck a chord with the twins. Fred spoke up.

'Trust me; pranks are our specialty; if we were going to prank you-'

'Which we're not.' George reassured.

'-You'd be looking pretty stupid, and we'd be laughing. But we're not, are we?' Fred reasoned.

'So, you should probably believe us.' said George.

.

AJ was still critical; she wasn't quite sure she _should_ trust Fred and George. This wasn't something she heard every day.

By now, the twins were getting desperate; they'd well and truly gone too far, or so they thought. Suddenly, AJ's book and cracker box levitated (seemingly of its own accord), floating above their heads. AJ squealed and jumped back.

'Hey! What's going on? What are- are you doing that?' she cried, nearly jumping out of her skin. But George was as confused as her.

'I'm not doing it!' he cried innocently. They both looked to Fred, who was just staring with a vague, wide-eyed expression. His head was tilted slightly to one side and he seemed only focused on the floating objects.

'Fred!' George shouted. Fred blinked, and instantly the book and cracker box dropped to the ground. AJ gawked at the twins.

'How- how did you do that?' she whispered, awestruck. Fred looked straight at her.

'Exactly the way you can. The same way all of us can. Now do you believe us?'

'I- I think so.' she replied, sitting down on the grass again. The twins frowned, not completely satisfied with the uncertainty in AJ's voice. Suddenly, a mutual idea formed in their minds and, sitting back down opposite her, they bargained for a new approach.

'Listen, its July isn't it?' George said knowingly.

'Yeah, so what?' AJ answered, not quite sure what he was getting at.

'Well, in about a week or so, you might get a letter.'

AJ scrunched up her face in surprise. 'A letter? But I never get mail; just on birthdays and Christmas and stuff.'

Fred grinned. 'Well, if you really _are_ a witch, you'll get a letter. Cause, we're waiting for ours any day now. All our brothers get theirs as well.'

This got AJ's curiosity sparked again, the idea of a special letter for wizards intrigued her. 'So, what's in the letter?' asked. Fred and George just exchanged a hopeless glance.

'Look, it's really hard to explain.' George sighed. 'But, if you do get the letter, meet us next Friday, same time same place.'

'And we promise we'll tell you everything.' Fred continued. 'Sound good?' they looked hopefully at AJ. She still wasn't sure, but deep down; she knew there was a reason for why she could do things out of the ordinary. And she'd already found a lot of common ground with Fred and George, so why what did she have to lose? Slowly, she nodded her head, and set her eyes straight on the twins.

'Okay' agreed. 'Weird, but okay. I'm still confused though.'

'Trust us AJ.'

'After next week.'

'You'll understand.' they finished together, standing up. AJ nodded stupidly. She hoped she wasn't being had by the twins, but they sounded pretty serious about it all for 11-year-olds. Fred and George looked behind them.

.

'Well, I think we have to go.'

'Sorry to leave you like this, but we really don't want our brothers coming after us again.'

'Alright.' AJ replied, trying to hide her disappointment. The twins started walking down the hill. As they did, AJ suddenly ran after them.

'Hey! Fred? George?'

They both turned around. 'Yeah?'

'What if I don't get the letter?'

Fred and George looked to each other in thought, before they both shrugged.

'Come anyway.' they replied cheerfully. 'Bye now!' and with that, they continued down the hill.  
.

AJ sighed, and then turned back to gather her things. She picked up her book carefully, afraid it might move of its own accord, but it didn't. It was odd; she'd wondered about her hidden abilities for years, and then suddenly, she meets two people her age that can do exactly what she can. Surely it was just coincidence? But what if they were right? What if she did get the letter? Whatever letter that was… But the notion that she might be some sort of witch, sounded sort of frightening; despite all of Fred and George's assurances it was brilliant. AJ just wasn't sure. Her, a witch? She looked nothing like the witches she'd seen in movies, and she couldn't ride a broomstick, or wear black all the time. She was just AJ, happy, healthy, relatively average AJ. She wasn't bizarre or deformed or a genius or anything. So how could it be possible?

But thinking back to her meetings with the Fred and George, there were certain peculiarities about them; George had been carried a broomstick, Fred had that strange red ball, and neither seemed to know what basketball was. They seemed a little different….but nothing truly unusual. But what would she know? AJ thought. All she could do now was wait for that letter to come. But what if she didn't get it and it was all just a dumb joke? But what if she _did_, what then? The only answer she had was to go see Fred and George again, so they could tell her what all the fuss was about. AJ pondered all this over the next few days, now having further purpose to check the mail box every day, waiting hopefully for the letter Fred and George had mentioned. So for one long week, she waited.

**...**


	3. Confusing Clues

**Chapter 3: Confusing Clues**

_"If things start happening, don't worry, don't stew,_

_just go right along and you'll start happening too."_

_Dr Seuss_

* * *

_**The Following Week…**_

As soon as the white square envelopes had dropped into the letterbox outside the white Tudor cottage, AJ tore her eyes from the front window and called out in the direction of the kitchen.

'Mama! Can I get the mail?'

'_Si_ darling, _gracias!_' Helena Xavier-Walsh replied from the kitchen. Within seconds, AJ was out the front door, bolting down the cobblestone path to open the crooked green letterbox by the fence. Once back inside, she skimmed over the five envelopes in her hand. A bill, another bill, something else for her parents, a newsletter from her brother's football club, and… a letter, addressed to_ her_. The eleven-year old stopped in her tracks; she'd nearly overlooked it, but the neat curly writing was hard to miss. It had _her_ name and address on the front, it was for her and her only. Which was strange; rarely was AJ the recipient of mail, postcards and letters from friends and cousins was the basic extent of it. She continued to stare at the thick-papered envelope, just to make sure she wasn't imagining things. And she wasn't- it was written there in black ink, clear as day.  
AJ turned over the envelope, curiously. But there was only a wax seal on the back. Examining the crest, AJ noticed a lion, a badger, an eagle, and a serpent in each quadrant, with a large capital "H" in the middle. Suddenly, AJ's heart caught in her throat and her stomach did a back-flip. What if this was it? The letter she'd been waiting for. She'd never seen any envelope addressed like this before; it just had to be hers. Suddenly, she realised with a jolt that this had to be what Fred and George had told her about. All week she had waited, and she wasn't going to see the twins until Friday, which was tomorrow. Surely this was what they'd meant…  
Still staring at the letter, AJ ran back into the kitchen, and dropped rest of the pile on the table, with the exception of hers. Her mother, who had been putting stacking the dishwasher, turned in surprise, her long dark hair swishing around behind her.

'Anything exciting today _Niña_? Helena asked with a warm smile. AJ loved her mother's smile; her father told her she was lucky to have inherited it. So she mirrored the smile and shook her head.

'A few bills, something for you and Pa, and football news for Sam.'

'Alright, thank you dear.' said Helena, kissing AJ's head. 'Can you get your plate from the table please?' AJ did so, replacing her plate with the mail on the kitchen table. As she sat down, she fiddled with the yellow envelope in her hands and took a deep breath.

'Mama, I…'

'Have you seen my tie, love?' AJ's father interrupted, walking into the kitchen, half-dressed for work. He gave AJ a quick kiss at the table, before making his way around to Helena. Ian Xavier-Walsh was a smart man, and knew how to work through life, but AJ knew by now that when he tried to do everything at once, he tended to worry over the little things in life. Today was one of those days.

'Which tie, dear?' Helena said, amusement lacing her voice.

'The plain red one.' Ian replied. 'I'm having lunch with some members of the General Hospital later today, and I was going to put on a tie after my shift, but now I can't find it. You haven't put it in the dryer with my socks, did you?'

'I've done no washing since Monday, and no ties either.' Helena chuckled.

As AJ watched on, she felt a large hand ruffle her hair. Clapping her hands to her head, she turned in her seat as her brother Samuel suddenly appeared across the room by the cookie jar, smiling a little too innocently. Her brother's resemblance to their father was quite remarkable; both had the same russet-red hair, smooth facial features, and bright green eyes. And while Samuel, at sixteen years old, wasn't the tallest of all men, he was still many inches taller than his very little sister. With another wily grin, Samuel slowly sat down next to AJ with a widening grin, and opened his football newsletter. If he felt AJ's attempts at glaring, he took no notice.

'Morning, _genethig_.' Samuel teased, not looking up from his newsletter. AJ scowled at his smirk, both praising and cursing her vast knowledge of Welsh.

'Sam!' she whined. 'I am _not_ a little girl!'

'Yes you are.' Sam replied airily. 'You know I'll always be taller.' he said, still smiling.

AJ frowned. 'No fair! Just cause you had your growth spurt….'

'Ah well little sis, one day I'm sure you'll grow another inch or two.' Samuel added in a dramatically wise tone, ruffling his sister's hair again. AJ pulled away and moved to her usual seat at the table across from him, still holding her letter protectively and out of sight. She glowered at her brother.

'_Twpsyn_.' she muttered in Welsh. Samuel looked up immediately. _Idiot_ she had called him.

'Objection!' trying to sound offended, but with amusement twinkling in his green eyes. Really, he wasn't at all surprised his little half-sister had made her comeback in the same language; he had taught her well.

AJ just stuck her tongue out in retaliation. Her brother mimicked her and went back to his letter, while AJ continued to listen to her parents discuss the possible whereabouts of her father's tie.

'Are you sure you've checked the sock drawer? You know how you get things mixed up.' Helena suggested, stacking dishes into the washer.

'I don't know.' Ian replied in near-exasperation. 'I'm sure I already checked.' He crossed the room to the basket of dry laundry lying on a chair and rummaged through it, already looking ready to give up.

'Well check again, just to be sure. And the wardrobe.' Helena continued, guiding her husband back to the staircase. Turning back to her children, she smiled.

'Dear, dear. Anything exciting Sam?' she asked, referring to the letter. Samuel shrugged.

'Not much. The County Gala Day's next month. Extra training sessions on Monday's as of next week, same time and all…' he trailed off, continuing to read. Helena nodded and looked over at AJ, who seemed very interested in something under the table.

.

'AJ, were you going to say something before?' AJ's head snapped up. She shifted awkwardly, holding the letter under the table.

'_Si _Ma. Um…I got a letter in the mail.' she said quietly, holding up the yellowish envelope. A raised eyebrow signaled that Helena was also surprised, even Samuel swung his attention back to his sister.

'What? You hardly ever get post.' he exclaimed in honest surprise.

'Who's it from dear?' asked Helena, walking over to the table. AJ shrugged, copying her brother's habit.

'I don't know. It's got some weird crest on the back, but my name is on it and everything.' she explained, showing her mother. Helena held the envelope for a second, taking in how heavy it was. She then handed it back to her daughter.

'Well, why don't you open it and see who it's from?' Sam put down his own letter to get a better look at the mysterious post. AJ fumbled with the seal, and pulled out two pieces of parchment-like paper. She unfolded the first, where her name and address were in the corner once again, with the crest in the middle. And she began to read. She didn't get very far, before her hazel eyes widened.

'What is it AJ? Who's it from?' her mother asked. AJ's eyes remained fixed on the words on the paper.

'_No. Way._' she breathed in astonishment.

'What is it Sis? Read it out.' Samuel requested impatiently. He wasn't used to seeing that look on his sister's face, and it was beginning to worry him, his mind already jumping to conclusions of prank letters from her new school, and the like. AJ took another breath and began to re-read the text, sparing the first part, which said:

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY_

_Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore  
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

She read:

"_Dear Miss Xavier-Walsh;_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry…"_

'WHAT?!' Helena and Samuel exclaimed, causing AJ to jump in her seat.

'Are you joking Aje?' her brother questioned with a quizzical look. Helena curiously looked over her daughter's shoulder, and read silently as AJ continued the letter.

"_Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress" _AJ finished in a hardly audible whisper.

Slowly, Helena's expression changed to one of disbelief. She gasped softly, grasping the back of AJ's chair.

'Impossible!' she breathed. She straightened up, looked in the direction of the stairs, and yelled for her husband.

'IAN! IAN! Come quickly _mi amor_!'

There was a clatter from above followed by the hurried thumping of large feet down the stairs.

'What is it?! What's happened?' Ian shouted, flying into the kitchen, holding his red tie, and most surprised to see his family either positioned more of less as they were before.

'What? What's going on?' he cried. Then he saw the letter in his daughter's hand. 'What's that?'

'A letter.' AJ said quietly.

'I can see that darling.' Ian replied patiently. 'Who's it for?'

'For AJ.' Helena answered.

'And who's it from?' There was a brief silence. Helena paused before answering.

'From a school. They say AJ's been accepted. It's, well…' she trailed off quietly.

'It's what?' Ian asked. He didn't remember writing to any other schools in the area since they'd been in England, surely the letter was just some harmless mix-up.

But Samuel was frowning. 'Da, it's pretty weird.' he said. Seeing the concerned looked on his son's face, Ian too slowly began to catch on to the strange feeling in the room. 'But we haven't enrolled anywhere since we moved. There must be some mistake.' he said.

'Dear, I think you just should read it.' Helena offered, indicating he come stand behind AJ, who was still re-reading the letter with large eyes. Ian made his way over to AJ, who silently handed him the first letter, and he read. Needless to say, Ian reacted more or less the same as AJ. His eyes widened, his breathing momentarily stilled, until he scoffed under his breath.

'But- but, what on…? Are they serious?' he muttered incredulously, looking at the letter again. 'Is this a joke? I mean… _witchcraft_ and _wizardry_? There's no such thing! What nonsense is this?'

Ian suddenly looked hard straight at his daughter, who was starting to shrink into her chair.

'AJ,' he began, 'Do you know who sent this to you?'

AJ nodded. 'It says. Hogwarts School of Witchcr-'

'I know that's what it says! But who really sent you this? A friend of yours perhaps? Did they think this would be funny?' he practically spat. He was looking very annoyed now. Helena and Sam seemed genuinely shocked and rather confused by his reaction, as did AJ, who'd shrunk even lower into her chair.

'But Papa, it's real, I can…'

'No AJ, this can't be real. If this school was real, it would mean you are… what? Some sort of witch? And you most certainly are not! You're a perfectly normal eleven year-old girl!' Ian reasoned, half to himself. He certainly didn't expect his daughter to start shaking her head at him.

'No Pap, I don't think I am. I…'

'What are you talking about child? What rubbish is this?' Ian shouted. AJ flinched slightly, as did Samuel.

'Ian, please! Let AJ say what she has to say.' Helena reasoned calmly, as AJ silently sung her mum's praises. Sitting down next her daughter, Helena gently ran a hand through AJ's short hair. 'Go on _Niña_.' she said. AJ took a deep breath and looked directly at the table with the second letter on it.

'I, um…I can do things, like small things that no one else can. I never said, because I didn't know what it was. I mean… I didn't know how or why I could do it. At first it wasn't anything. But last week, I met these two boys up on the hill near the orchard, and-'

'You what?' Ian exclaimed in disbelief.

'Ian!' Helena warned more severely. Leveling himself, Ian took a deep breath, and motioned for AJ to continue.

'They're twins, they boys; Fred and George. They're the same age as me too, I've only met them twice. But they asked me if I could do strange things that weren't really normal, because they could too. I told them about what I'd done, and they believed me. And they said their whole family could do stuff like that too, but even better. Then they told me- I was a w-witch.' AJ paused, her voice quiet. 'And they're wizards, like their family. They said if I really was a witch, I'd get a special letter, and, um…'

AJ looked directly at her family. The looks on their faces were something close to horrified, disbelieving, and mildly curious, all at the same time. Praying with all her might, AJ hoped they would believe her. Even if they didn't, she could still go back to the orchard hill and show Fred and George her letter. To prove she was a witch, that they were right. To think, she could go to a school to learn about magic, _real_ magic. Maybe Fred and George could ask their Mum and Dad to explain what was going on. Maybe…

'AJ?' the question did not come from her Dad, or her mum. It was from Samuel. All eyes turned to him, a thoughtful expression on his soft face. But AJ knew her brother; and behind his green eyes, there was a flicker of… was it fear? He gulped as his sister looked him with sad, pleading eyes.

'Sis, say you really are a….witch.' he said the word with some difficulty. 'Surely it must mean you have some sort of, I don't know…power. You said you could do weird things, yeah? Why didn't you tell us? I mean, if we knew, we would've noticed something odd by now. What can you do?'

* * *

.

And so AJ began to explain some of the abnormal quirks and strange happenings at school that she had unintentionally come upon, earning strange looks from her family, their expression clearing for brief moments, as if it explained something they'd previously wondered about. When she had finished, Samuel continued to look thoughtful.

'Okay, uh- geez. You can really do all that, Aje? And not even say anything?' he asked. AJ nodded meekly. Samuel let out a short breath, looking impressed.

'Wicked.' he murmured.

AJ held up the other piece of parchment she had received. 'But, I was looking at this other list, look at what it says! It says I need stuff like a wand, and…' she was cut off by her father laughing.

'A wand? A MAGIC wand? Sweetheart, this is ridiculous!' he threw his hands up in the air.

'Ian!' Helena pleaded, slightly less calm than before. AJ shifted in agitation, slightly comforted that at least Samuel seemed genuinely interested.

'It's not, Da. Really!' AJ argued back, her voice wavering slightly. 'I said I'd meet Fred and George tomorrow at our spot on the hill. They said they'd explain everything to me if I got the letter! One of them actually made my book lift up in the air! I saw it with my own eyes! And I can do it too! I swear Pap, it's true!'

But Ian wasn't buying it, trying to convince his daughter and himself that this was really happening. 'No.' he muttered quietly, 'This is silly child's play. You're being dishonest AJ, and that's not the way I raised you. This needs to stop now.' he answered firmly.

AJ shook her head, trying to stop the tears welling up in her eyes. 'No, Da! I really can do magic!' she wailed.

'Then prove it.' The demand was short, but sure. If Ian Xavier-Walsh was going to believe his only daughter was a witch, he needed to see it first.

'What?' gasped Helena. 'Ian? I don't know if that's wise. I mean-'

'No! I want to see this for myself. AJ, do something! If you really are a- a _witch_, then show us that you are!' he ordered. AJ's eyes met with Sam's and pleaded with him helplessly, but all her brother could do was shrug. A few seconds later, Ian had made up his mind.

'No? Fine. AJ, this has to stop. You're lying to us.'

'NO! I'm NOT LYING!' AJ yelled loudly, rising from her chair.

Suddenly, two glasses and a plate on the counter smashed and shattered of their own accord on the counter-top. Everyone jumped, spinning around to view the damage. Then back to a frightened-looking AJ.

'AJ…?' Ian began.

The girl gasped and began to stammer uncontrollably. 'I- I'm sorry Pappy, I…'

But then the windows and blinds started rapidly opening and closing and shaking- if their own accord. Objects all around the room began to shake and teeter on their surfaces, with the intensity of a mild earthquake. AJ's fists were shaking, her family looking rather scared. AJ scrunched up her face, shutting her eyes, willing herself to calm down and everything to stop. And slowly, very slowly, everything died down, and returned to normal; apart from the broken glasses and plates. Ian, Helena, and Samuel were absolutely speechless.

AJ struggled to speak, and her voice quavered fearfully. 'S-s-see? I told you! I AM a witch! I d-don't care what you say, but I'm going to find Fred and George tomorrow, a-and they'll tell me what to do! At least they believe me!'

Without another word, she grabbed her letters from the table and sprinted up the stairs. It was only when she slammed her bedroom door that her family seemed to come back to very different reality.


	4. Definitely Different

**Chapter 4: Definitely Different**

_"Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple."_

_Dr Seuss._

* * *

_._

There was little to do, or say for that matter; what the Xavier-Walsh's had just witnessed was more than enough to make them question everything. Ian had joined his wife and son in a kitchen chair, his red tie forgotten. None said a word. After a iron-heavy pause hung over the kitchen, Samuel decided he needed to do something, before they all went mad. He stood up suddenly, his Ian and Helena vaguely glancing up at him.

'I'm going to, um, talk to AJ.' he announced diplomatically, turning on his heel and trudging up the stairs without another word.

When he reached his sister's room, he hesitated, unsure what words could really be of help. Giving comfort-talks to pre-teenage sisters wasn't exactly the manliest job a sixteen year-old boy usually did. But with his protective instinct kicking in and his mind whirring over what he'd just seen, Samuel straightened his shoulders and knocked on the door.

'Go away!' was the muffled response. Samuel refrained from rolling his eyes; typical AJ, he thought.

'Aje, it's only me. Can I come in?' there was no reply. Persisting, he opened the door anyway, and found his sister curled up on her bed, her pillow scrunched tight in her arms. It didn't take much to know AJ had likely been crying. Sighing, Samuel closed the door softly and sat down on the edge of the bed.

'Hey _hyfryd_. What's going on with you?' he started off quietly. AJ looked up at him with watery eyes.

'I- I don't know. I… didn't mean to do it Sam, but- I don't how... But…you _saw_ it too!' she groaned in exasperation. 'Why won't Mum and Dad believe me?'

Sam sighed. 'I dunno AJ; it's a lot to take in.' he answered honestly. 'Look, I'm sorry Dad went off like that, but maybe he and Ma don't want to believe it 'cause it was... y'know, a bit out of the blue. I mean, _I've_ never seen anything like that before, you sure had me freaked.' he added with a smile, hoping to get one in return. It didn't seem to work. He looked down and wrung his hands together. Both remained silent for a bit before AJ looked up at her brother again.

.

'You believe me, don't you?'

Samuel quickly nodded in reassurance, shifting a little closer and looking firmly into AJ's worried eyes. 'Course I do. Seriously, I think it's mad you can make stuff like that happen, but I guess it's okay if you're not the only one, yeah?.' AJ smiled; happy someone else was on her side.

'_Diolch_ Sam.' she whispered in thanks, sniffing back anymore tears. Sam set his mouth in a firm line; he really didn't like seeing his baby sister upset, especially because she was usually so obscenely cheerful.

'Come here _genethig_.' he said, opening his arms, letting AJ crawled onto his lap. Although she was still pretty small for her age, this wasn't the sort of thing she did with her too-cool brother anymore. She did however, make a noise of disapproval at his comment.

'Shut up.' she mumbled, tightly hugging her brother's waist. Sam chuckled, wrapping his arms around AJ's small shoulders and pulling her close.

'Hey, don't worry, Aje.' Sam soothed. He paused as he got a spark on inspiration. 'Remember what Dr. Seuss said?'

AJ raised her eyebrows and gave him a quizzical look. 'What?'

'_"Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is You-er than You."' _he recited, pulling AJ's head back forcing her to look up at him. 'Don't let anyone get to you because you're different.'

'What if they do?' AJ murmured doubtfully.

'Then they'll have your scary big brother to deal with.' he reassured. AJ giggled into his chest.

'Okay. But your _that_ not scary.' she pointed out.

'Well, I can be.' Samuel replied confidently. AJ shook her head, still smiling.

'Nah-ah. You're a wimp.'

Samuel scoffed, looking hurt. 'Am I? We'll see about that!' he said, pulling AJ into a headlock on the bed, and tickling her ribs. AJ squealed, and tried to wriggle out of his grip, but he was too strong. They wrestled each other on the bed, hurling several childish insults at each other in Welsh.  
.

They stopped their rumble when from downstairs, they heard a knock at the front door and the sound of the doorbell. AJ and Samuel stopped their rumble, as Helena called them.

'AJ? Samuel? Will you come down please? There's someone here!' AJ looked to Samuel nervously.

'Am I in trouble?' she whispered.

Sam shrugged. 'I don't think so. You better go down; I think they're waiting for you.' he advised, getting off the bed. AJ got up, pocketing her letter just in case. She walked to the door, but turned around again anxiously. However, Samuel was one step ahead.

'Don't worry, your scary brother's gonna be right behind you.' he assured.

* * *

.

Ian and Helena were waiting for them in the kitchen, along with two very oddly dressed people. One was a tall, thin woman with tightly pinned greying-black hair and sharp features which made her look rather stern. She was wearing a long, emerald green cloak. The second person was a lean, balding man with red hair and a very pleasant smile. There was something about his expression that seemed somewhat familiar. He was dressed in shabby brown clothes, with a darker cloak to match. He was gazing around the house in wonder, as if he'd never stepped foot in one before. AJ entered the kitchen tentatively, followed closely by Samuel. All eyes turned to her. The red-haired man beamed.

'Ah! This must be AJ, is that right?' he asked with a friendly tone. AJ gave a small nod. She looked at the two strangers more closely. She'd never seen people dressed in such a way before, she couldn't help but wonder who they were and why they were here. Ian, who was looking quite nervous and slightly embarrassed, cleared his throat abruptly.

'Yes. This is AJ, and this is Samuel, my eldest.' he said, indicating the tall boy behind AJ, who was also ogling the newcomers. He managed to give a friendly nod.

'These people have come to talk to you about the school AJ.' Helena explained calmly, trying a smile. She continued when she saw no reaction from her daughter. 'The school from your letter.'

.

'Suddenly, AJ's face lit up in hope. She wasn't crazy, no one was pranking her. How these strange looking people actually knew about the letter was beyond her, but they were here to explain everything. AJ tilted her head back to Samuel, who was just as surprised. AJ spun back to her parents.

Unable to contain her curiosity, AJ bravely blurted out,

'Really? Are you magic too?'

The red-headed man beamed even wider. 'Oh yes! Wizards and Witches are we, AJ! You're not alone you know!' he said cheerily. To AJ's surprise, the old woman also gave a comforting smile. Somehow that seemed hard to believe- her features could have been carved out of stone. But her smile was gentle, nonetheless.

'Yes Miss Xavier-Walsh, we can also do magic.' she answered with a slight Scottish accent.

'Really? Can you show me?' AJ said in a rush. She flushed at her sudden burst of enthusiasm. 'Please?' she added. Professor McGonagall gave a curt nod and pulled something from her cloak. It was a thin, sleek wooden stick, with intricate designs carved all over it. She pointed it at the fireplace in the living room, which erupted into bright sparks and warm, crackling warm flames. AJ and her family watched on in amazement. Ian still looked rather uncomfortable with it all.

'Wow.' exclaimed AJ. 'Will I be able to do that?'

'In time, Miss Xavier Walsh.' the old woman replied wisely. She motioned towards the man beside her. 'May I introduce, Mr Arthur Weasley.' she said, though AJ's parents had probably already been introduced. He gave another smile, and a wave.

'I hear you've already met two of my boys, Fred and George.' he added politely. Once again, AJ's face brightened in realisation as she made the connection. Now, the relation seemed obvious.

'Yeah, I have.' AJ replied sheepishly. McGonagall continued.

'Mr Weasley works for the Ministry for Magic, and is a former student of Hogwarts, where his children now attend. He has offered to assist in helping your family through this transition process.'

Mr Weasley nodded. 'Yes, yes I have. Shall we all sit down maybe?' he suggested.

'Why don't we sit in the living room?' Helena offered, indicating the lounges that provided more room.

.  
Once everyone was seated, Professor McGonagall resumed talking.

'Now, it is not the usual case that we visit every student we accept, but as no one else in your family appears to be a witch or wizard, we can assume you are Muggle-born.'

'I beg your pardon?' Ian interrupted. He looked rather offended at the unknown word. McGonagall calmly went on.

'What I mean to say Mr Xavier-Walsh is that in our world, a Muggle is what we call a non-magical person. And as your daughter appears to be the only known magical member of your family, her blood status reads as such. But it is not uncommon; there are plenty of other students in the same situation. We are merely required by the Headmaster to help your family understand the fact of the matter. This is not an everyday occurrence for an eleven year old, I assure you.'

'I'll bet it isn't.' Ian mumbled, earning a stern nudge from Helena, as McGonagall continued.

* * *

.

In just a few minutes, AJ had learned of the basics of Hogwarts' long-standing history, and it's acceptance of young witches and wizards from the age of eleven, with graduation at the age of seventeen and eighteen. She was told many other things, such as how the staff were called Professors, all of whom taught different subjects, and even a few of school's general rules.

'So, it's like boarding school?' AJ piped up. She had eagerly been hanging on to every word Professor McGonagall had said.

'Yes, essentially. You will be able to visit your families during holidays of you wish, and summer break will extend from late June to the start of the New Year on September 1st. All first years are sorted into one of four houses, which become like their families during their time at Hogwarts.'

'Houses, as in- like sporting teams?' Samuel quipped, also curious to hear more. He was answered by Mr Weasley.

'More or less. They do have sporting teams, but each house is like one big team of sorts- their own common room and dormitories, uniforms and the like. Everyone has friends in other houses, so it isn't an immediate definition of person.'

Samuel looked on approvingly. 'Nice one Aje.' he said, nudging his sister. The surprises kept coming as AJ's school list was explained, the contents a tad overwhelming for Ian.

'But this is absurd!' he said. 'I mean, where on earth are we going to get all of this? And the cost...'

'There are places especially for wizards where purchases are available, Mr Xavier-Walsh; all hidden from Muggles of course.' McGonagall explained evenly. 'And as for cost, that can be organised in terms of converting to wizarding currency.' she said.

'So where do you get a wand?' AJ inquired curiously.

'There is a place in London called Diagon Alley, AJ.' Mr Weasley said. 'Before term starts, we'll take you there specially. You're welcome to join our family to come for school supplies, and, uh- so is your family, of course.' he added, cautiously trying to imagine how well that would go down.

'Cool!' AJ and Samuel said together.

'You can also bring a pet with you to school.' Mr Weasley added.

'Really? Like what?'

'An owl, a cat or a toad is permitted.' said Professor McGonagall. AJ was already forming several ideas. She'd love another cat; she hadn't had a real pet since moving to England. A toad...well, she usually preferred them in the creeks where she didn't have to handle them too much. As for an owl…

'Mama, Pap, can I get an owl?' Ian looked horrified at the thought; Helena didn't know whether to look amused or concerned.

'Um, why don't we discuss it later?' Helena replied. 'An owl or a cat, maybe.' AJ shrugged, and turned back to the adults opposite her.

'What else do I need to know?'

* * *

.

So far, things weren't looking too bad. They were far from normal, but at least there was some hope for the coming months. In the whole town of Ottery St. Catchpole, no one was more excited than AJ Xavier-Walsh. In a week or so, she'd be going to Diagon Alley with Mr Weasley, Fred, George, and two of their older siblings to buy her new school supplies. To say that AJ was thrilled was an understatement- she was ecstatic. Samuel actually threatened to ban her watching football with the family because she was so jittery. That brought her back to earth her just a little bit.

AJ marched determinedly up another lush green hill; she was seeing Fred and George again today. She had her letter, hopefully they had theirs, and they'd explain everything else. She was quite free to do as she pleased today anyway; her parents were working, and Sam had friends over, so AJ conveniently left the house for her prior engagement. As per usual, she made her way up the hill with her usual necessities. With no sign of Fred or George, she sat down, and started to read.

'_"It all began with a shoe on the wall. A shoe on the wall shouldn't be there at all."_'

'You know George; I really am beginning to worry about this girl.'

'Mm. Me too Fred, I mean, what in Merlin's name do Muggle books teach people anyways?'

AJ smirked behind her book, lowering it to find herself face to face with the smiling ginger twins.

'Dr Seuss books aren't meant to be serious, they're meant to be nonsense and fun.' AJ proclaimed proudly, as any little fan would. The twins shrugged.

'What's this one called then?' asked one of them, sitting down.

_'Wacky Wednesday.'_ AJ answered.

'It's Friday.' they replied, rolling their eyes.

'I know that! It's the book title, silly.' AJ sighed dramatically. The twins said nothing and with hands in pockets, stared at AJ expectantly. 'What? She asked nervously.

'Well?' they said.

'Well what?'

'Do you have it?'

'Have what?

'The LETTER!' they yelled. In an instant, AJ's expression turned triumphant. She pulled out two pieces of parchment from inside her book.

'I. Do.' she announced.

The twins cheered and hooted in delight.

'Ha! We knew it!'

'We just knew it! You ARE a witch!'

'You're coming to Hogwarts!'

'YAY AJ!

Before she knew it, AJ found herself engulfed by four long arms. She laughed as Fred and George tackle-hugged her to the grass in their happiness.

'Hey! Alright!' she laughed, sitting up again. 'So you got your letters too?' The twins nodded, pulling out identical letters from their pockets, holding them up like trophies.

'Cool huh?' George said.

.

'Dad said you're coming to Diagon Alley with us next week!' Fred said excitedly. 'Charlie and Percy are coming too! You excited?'

'Oh yes! What's it like?' AJ asked. The twins beamed from ear to ear.

'Mad.' said Fred.

'Wicked mad!' added George.

'Though, we go there every year.'

'So we know the place back to front.'

'But we'll show you around- you're going to be mind-blown! They gushed.

'Cool! Least you know where to go.' AJ said. 'Can you do any magic yet, you know- spells and stuff?'

They shook their heads. 'Nup. We don't have wands yet; we learn all that at Hogwarts.'

'So can practice stuff in the holidays?' AJ asked.

The twins looked horrified. 'No way!' shouted Fred.

'If we do magic outside school, we could get expelled.'

'Oh.' AJ replied, slightly disappointed. 'Okay then.'

'Don't worry about it. You don't learn too much in first year.'

'Yeah, it's not like we'll be able to blow up stuff. Although, I might ask Charlie if he can...'

And on and on the Weasley twins went, telling AJ practically everything they knew about Hogwarts, and the Wizarding World. They hadn't gotten round to Quidditch yet, but AJ was shocked to hear at the large numbers of wizards and witches who lived all over the world, including Wales and Spain.

'No way! How come I never saw them?' AJ huffed. 'I've lived there!' The twins just shrugged, and started telling her about Diagon Alley. If they kept going, AJ might have had an intellectual overload. But it was all so amazing, and she hadn't even seen any of it yet. This was a completely new world for her, and she wanted to explore it all. And with the Weasleys, what could possibly go wrong?

* * *

.

**A/N: hyfryd – **_**Welsh **_**for lovely. **_**Diolch**_**– Welsh for thanks.**

**I've got the basic idea of how (most) Muggle born kids find out about Hogwarts, usually a Professor will arrive with the letter in hand, but y'know, who knows when mail arrives? We didn't see it with Harry for obvious reasons, cause he's Harry (Freakin-Potter! Starkids...)**

**Just so you know- I am most determined not to write a Mary Sue. See? No dark and depressing past so far with melodramatic outbursts, pretty average kind of Muggle family being taken along for the ride with AJ. It's her involvement with the wizarding world that really gets things going, you'll see. Review are hugs Next chapter, Diagon Alley!**

**G.**


	5. Exciting Endeavours

**Chapter 5: Exciting Endeavours**

_"You'll be on your way up! You'll be seeing great sights!_

_You'll join the high fliers who soar to high heights."_

_Dr. Seuss. (Oh, The Places You'll Go!)_

* * *

The doorbell of the Xavier-Walsh household rung at nine am on the dot. Jittery with excitement, AJ bounded down the stairs to the living room where she was met by Mr Weasley, Fred and George, and two other red-headed boys who could only be two of their brothers. Mr Weasley was beaming as usual and looking around the living room with renewed interest. Fred and George grinned identically upon AJ's noisy entry.

'Hi AJ!' they chorused. Today, they were dressed in jeans, and matching green t-shirts. Everything about them was the same, right down to their scruffy white shoes. AJ couldn't tell who was who, even as she greeted them.

Mr Weasely beamed wider at her enthusiasm. 'Good to see you again, AJ.' he said. Today he was dressed in travel-worn dark blue robes, with a matching pointy hat in his hand. The two boys AJ didn't know were staring at her; taking in her short ruddy hair and hazel eyes right down to her obviously Muggle clothing (a Cardiff FC jersey and stripy leggings). She in turn observed the two older boys with fascination. One had to be at least 13; he was tall and lanky with curly red hair, a thin face like Arthur, and serious blue eyes behind horn-rimmed glasses. He seemed to watch her with a stiff sort of curiosity. The other boy was a few years older and far more friendly-looking. He was built like the twins, but taller and very handsome. He too had fiery red hair which hung around his face. His bright blue eyes were warm and bright, something AJ noticed was another recurring trait within the Weasley family.

'Helena, AJ, these are four of my boys.' Mr Weasley introduced. 'Charlie,' he said pointing to the eldest. 'Percy,' he put a hand on the younger one's shoulder. 'And Fred and George, who are also starting Hogwarts this year.'

Helena smiled. 'Nice to meet you.' She turned to look at her daughter approvingly. 'There you go dear, you've got friends already.'

'I know Mama.' AJ agreed, a tad impatient. 'Where we are going, Mr Weasley?'

At this question, Mr Weasley clapped his hands together. 'We're going to Diagon Alley, one of Britain's main wizarding streets.'

'And where is Diagon Alley?' Helena asked.

'It's hidden in London.'

'London?!' AJ and her mother exclaimed in very different tones.

'That's quite a while from Devon, isn't it, Arthur?' Helena said nervously.

Mr Weasley rubbed the back of his neck. 'Well yes, but our modes of transport make the journey much quicker.' AJ noticed the twins smirk, which disappeared when Charlie clapped the backs of their heads.

'So how do we get there?' AJ asked.

Charlie Weasley cleared his throat. 'We're taking the _bus,_ right dad?' he said emphatically.

Mr Weasley exchanged a knowing look with his son and nodded. 'Yes Charlie, the bus it is. Are we ready to go?'

AJ bounced on the balls of her feet. 'Oh yes!' she exclaimed, looking up at her mother hopefully. 'Can I go now Mama? Please, please, please?'  
.

Helena laughed and handed her daughter her owl-shaped backpack 'Of course, _Niña._ Now be good.' she said, noticing Mr Weasley staring with fascination at their radio. His sons reacted first, Percy nudged his father in the side while the twins sniggered.

'Dad, not now.' Charlie muttered. Mr Weasley cleared his throat awkwardly, and clapped his hands together.

'Anyway, shall we?'

* * *

.

Despite her enthusiasm, AJ couldn't help but feel suspicious, if not a little confused as to exactly how they'd get to London and back by bus before midnight.  
Mr Weasley led them to street off the main road. There were no bus-stops in sight, which didn't seem to bother any of the Weasleys in the slightest. AJ's lack of patience eventually got the better of her.

'Um, Mr Weasley?'

He turned and smiled expectantly.

'There aren't any bus-stops here. How are we going find a bus to take us to London?'

The Weasley boys all shared a grin, as if they all knew something AJ didn't.

'Well AJ, in our world we've got a few alternate travel options to make things a lot quicker.' Mr Weasley continued. 'One moment please.' He looked up and down the empty street and flung out his right arm. A moment later, there was a loud BANG! and AJ squealed. When she looked up, her jaw nearly dropped to the ground.

Towering over them on the kerb was an enormous triple-decker bus, painted a most shocking shade of violet. The gold lettering at the front read: _The Knight Bus._ AJ couldn't take her eyes off the strange vehicle; it looked like something out of a Roald Dahl book. A young man in a purple uniform jumped off the back end of the bus. He clapped his conductor's cap over his scruffy brown hair and smiled.

'Welcome to the Knight Bus; emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard. Just stick out your wand arm and we will take you anywhere you want to go.' The conductor paused and looked over the group standing before him on the pavement. 'All you lot then?'

'Yes thank you.' Mr Weasley replied. 'On you get, kids.

They filed onto the bus one by one, Fred and George half-pulling AJ with them. The bus' interior was as bizarre as the outside; instead of seats, there were several wheelie beds across the bottom deck, with a winding staircase that led up to the other two decks. The only other people on the bus were an elderly couple holding onto a metal bed-pole cautiously, and the grey-haired and bespectacled driver up the front. The conductor joined them and gave them another smile.

'Sorry, didn't introduce myself earlier. I'm Alistair Forthwind, your conductor for today. Where are you lot headed then?'

'Diagon Alley.' Mr Weasley answered.

'Right then, that'll be eleven sickles each. But for thirteen, you can-'

'No thanks Alistair, just to London and back for all of us.' Mr Weasley said firmly.

Alistair nodded obligingly as Mr Weasley counted out an amount of strange gold, silver, and bronze coins. Once they'd exchanged money and tickets, Mr Weasley turned his children and AJ, and grabbed one the poles.

'Hold on tight everyone.'

Alistair tapped the glass of the driver's compartment. 'Righto Ernie, take her away.'

In the blink of an eye, the Knight Bus shot forward with bullet speed, leaving Ottery St Catchpole behind, and flying past a myriad of blurry landscapes right through to London.

…

When the Knight Bus finally ground to a halt, everyone lurched forward. AJ managed to keep one hand firmly clutching a bed, but crashed straight into the back of Charlie Weasley. She flushed furiously and mumbled an embarrassed apology. He just smiled understandingly and held her shoulder to keep her steady.

'Don't worry about it.' he shrugged. 'Are you okay?'

'Yeah. This is the weirdest bus I've ever been on.' AJ huffed out.

'Alright everybody, we're here- ouch, sorry Percy. Off we get.' Mr Weasley announced with a slightly forced eagerness. He was looking a little paler than when he'd stepped onto the bus, but if he too was feeling disoriented, he hid it well. AJ stumbled out of the Knight Bus, glad to be back on solid ground. She had been on roller-coasters before, but never had she experienced a ride like this. Suddenly she was beginning to feel apprehensive about entering the wizarding world; she desperately hoped that the Knight Bus wasn't the only form of magical transport around.

'You do get around other ways, don't you?' she asked Fred and George.

She was answered by Charlie behind her. 'Don't worry, this was a rare treat. We get around other ways... might show you later.' he assured as they all crossed onto the other side of the road.

She stuck close to the twins as they set off down a busy shopping street. AJ had only been to London a handful of times, and found it truly interesting; everything seemed big and bold and important in London, old and new at the same time. Her mind wandered back to how they'd gotten here in the first place.

'Here we are then.' he announced. AJ found herself standing with the Weasleys in front of a small grubby-looking building. Above them, she read the dirty sign that hung overhead, which read: _The Leaky Cauldron_. It was a pub. Whatever expectations AJ had about wizarding establishments, this was not it. She gave a skeptical sidelong glance to Fred and George. They shrugged as their father opened the door and quickly let Charlie and Percy in.

'It's okay, only wizards come in here.' explained George.

'Trust us.' added Fred, entering with his twin. AJ considered; she'd trusted Fred and George before, and their promises _had_ turned out alright so far. It wasn't like she could go back now. She looked up at Mr Weasley who was smiling down at her encouragingly.

'After you, AJ.'

And with no idea what to anticipate, she entered The Leaky Cauldron.

* * *

The inside of the pub was almost as dingy as the outside, but surprisingly roomy. There were only about a dozen or so people sitting and standing around downstairs; chatting, eating and drinking. To AJ, it seemed like a fairly normal place, until she noticed a stack of plates floating in mid-air and stacking themselves in the kitchen sink. Looking closer at the people, she realised that all of them were wearing cloaks and strange robes like Mr Weasley. Her eyes scanned the rest of the room, guessing that the staircase on the far wall led to upstairs rooms and that downstairs was for eating and drinking. So why had they come here, she wondered.

'Come along you lot.' said Mr Weasley, ushering them all along to a door on the other side of the room. He politely greeted to some wizards huddled together around a table, who all nodded in reply. AJ noticed one of them had a hunchback and wore an eye-patch. She tried not to stare as she passed. The next door that Mr Weasley opened led to a small bricked-up courtyard that was sprouting weeds. AJ looked to Fred and George again in confusion.

'I don't get it, why are we here?' she whispered.

'You'll see.' they answered. The matching glints in their eyes told AJ that they wanted to keep her guessing. She watched on as Mr Weasley pulled out a long sleek stick which she realised was a wand, something like the one Professor McGonagall had carried.

'Three up… two across.' Mr Weasley recited, tapping his wand in the same pattern on the bricks. For a moment, nothing happened, but then there was a low rumble and the bricks started to shift apart. The wall became an archway that led to…

'AJ, welcome to Diagon Alley.' Mr Weasley announced. He placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled widely as he watched AJ's eyes widen. The four Weasley boys quietly chuckled at her astonishment; all amused by her reaction to what they thought perfectly normal.

'What do you think?' the twins asked her. AJ could only gawk like a goldfish; she wasn't quite sure how to respond. It was like stepping into Wonderland, she thought. Except it was real, all real.

'This is amazing!' she exclaimed, her voice barely above a whisper. Suddenly she laughed in excitement. 'It's wonderful!'  
Grinning with satisfaction, Fred and George took AJ's arms in theirs and with their family, led her into the main street.

…

Walking through the Alley, AJ's face felt almost stretched as she gazed up and around her in absolute wonder. She was in a street, a very packed street, a very packed and strangely magical-looking street. Above her was a light cloudy sky, exactly the same as the sky outside the Leaky Cauldron in London. Everywhere she looked, witches and wizards, young and old, in all sorts of unusual clothes moved at varying speeds in and out of various shops. Somewhere in the distance, AJ heard the screeching of birds, her thoughts confirmed when a large grey owl swooped over her head.  
Soon, it struck AJ that this place didn't just look magical, it felt magical too. She wondered if all magical places were this alive and wonderful. She hadn't even gone into the shops yet, and she was already immersed in the place.

'This is so cool.' she told Fred and George, who were still on either side of her. 'I can't believe this is all here, a whole street of magic!'

'Yeah, it is-'

'-pretty cool.' Fred and George agreed. They'd obviously been up and down Diagon Alley many times, but now with their new friend, they felt rather proud of it.

'Look AJ, that's where we get our books.' said Fred, pointing to a large bookshop called _Flourish and Blotts_. 'And there's where you get supplies for class and stuff.' he continued as they passed more shops along the cobblestone street. AJ wished she had more eyes, or even more heads just so she could see everything at once; there was so much.

'Look, there's Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour,' George added when they passed a brightly decorated building with table and chairs out the front. 'He does the best sundaes ever!'

'Wait, where are we actually going?' said AJ, as they approached even more shops down the other end of the street.

'Gringotts of course!' Fred and George answered brightly.

'That's the wizard bank. See there?' George said, indicating the large establishment straight ahead. It was built a little like some of the old banks of normal London, big and tall, with several faded pastel-stone columns towered on top of each other, and a few little gargoyles on every level. Although, AJ was quick to notice that the gargoyles were of strange magical creatures, and that the whole building itself was severely titled on different angles. At the front door, they carefully read a warning message, before being allowed to enter the bank.

'Hey AJ, whatever you do, try not to stare too much.' George whispered to her as they walked through the doors.

AJ frowned. 'Why would I… what the heck is that?' she half-whispered, half-shrieked as a tiny little figure with wrinkled papery skin, black beady eyes and large ears waddled past them with a trolley of rubies. Fred and George sniggered.

'That, is a goblin AJ, heaps of them work for Gringotts. Bill works with them Egypt now.' Fred explained quietly. AJ seemed too dumbfounded to respond; she was staring, outright staring. She couldn't help it; she was in a bank, full of goblins. And other wizards were carrying on as if this was truly commonplace. Fred and George gave each other a look, and rolled their eyes.

'You've got a lot to learn AJ.' Fred whispered in mock-resignation.

'Do enjoy yourself.' George added, as they followed Mr Weasley to a desk, where he was already making arrangements with the goblin teller for AJ's new account.

…

The rest of the morning was spent buying new school supplies for AJ and updating supplies for the Weasley boys. AJ had been surprised to find out that Fred and George already had most of their things second-hand, courtesy of their older brothers, and that overall, they weren't a very well-off family. AJ spent the rest of the morning with a slightly awkward feeling in the back of her mind as she pictured both the meagre amount of money in her vault and the similar sized pile in the Weasley's. It didn't make sense that such a kind and well-known wizarding family could possibly be poor. But the twins seemed to brush it off and take it in their stride, instead teaching AJ how wizarding money worked.

By the time they'd all had lunch, AJ's trunk was full of strange new essentials. She'd bought spell-books, quills, ink and parchment for writing. Also in AJ's trunk was a pewter cauldron, a scale-set and telescope, as well as a few unusual ingredients she'd acquired from the apothecary. Earlier, Mr Weasley had also dropped AJ off at _Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions_, while Charlie took Percy and the twins to another shop (they'd mentioned something about "Quidditch" again). AJ had been measured for her uniform, huffing in annoyance when Madam Malkin in all observant kindness, had taken note of AJ's distinct lack of height and overall size. Once over that slight insecurity, AJ decided she actually quite liked her uniform; it looked fairly normal, except for the black robe and pointy hat. Now with all her supplies, AJ still had one important purchase to make.

* * *

'So where are we going now?' AJ asked what felt like the millionth question that day.

'To Ollivander's, he's the wandmaker.'

'You mean we're really getting wands? Actual magic wands?' AJ repeated excitedly. The spring in her step suddenly got a whole lot bouncier. This was what she'd been looking forward to all afternoon. Fred and George were just as eager.

'Yep.' they said. A moment later, they approached an old circular brown shop near the end of the alley. The peeling letters above the window read: _Ollivander's: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C._ Mr Weasley held the door open for them and AJ followed the twins into the warm shop, instantly hit with the scent of musty air and old wood. The walls of the shop were full with small boxes stacked onto shelves as far as the eye could see. Behind the wooden counter stood a tall and rather elderly man with fine wispy white hair and a wise old face, holding a fine piece of wood, no more than a foot in length, and designed with intricate patterns on one end. He looked up at the newcomers.

'Arthur Weasley, I wondered when I'd be seeing you again.' he said in raspy welcome.

'You're not rid of me just yet, Ollivander. Good to see you.' Mr Weasley chuckled. Ollivander's hauntingly clear blue eyes looked over at Fred, George and AJ on the other side of the desk, and clucked his tongue in surprise. 'Dear me Arthur, how many more children do you have requiring wands?'

'Just the twins this year, young AJ here belongs to someone else.' Mr Weasley replied with slightly pink ears. AJ wondered how everyone seemed to know the Weasleys had such a large family.

Mr Ollivander smiled knowingly, and focused his pale gaze on AJ. 'I see now, hair's not quite so red.' he observed. AJ flushed and look at the ground. 'If you could wait just one moment please, I'm just finding a wand for this young lady.' Ollivander indicated a young girl their age with bright green eyes and long strawberry-blonde hair.

'Of course.' said Mr Weasley, nodding to the girl's mother. 'Eleanor, good to see you again.'

Eleanor nodded politely in return. 'Same to you Arthur.' she replied with an Irish accent. 'I'd forgotten your boys would be in the same year as Jessica. I'm sure there are a few others at work with kids the same age; we must all have perfect timing.' she laughed.

'Yes, I'd say so too.' Arthur agreed cheerily.

…

Five minutes later, the girl, Jessica had acquired a fine-looking beechwood wand, and proudly left the shop with her mother. By now, Fred, George and AJ were all buzzing with anticipation. Mr Ollivander let out a long breath and looked expectantly at the three eleven-year-olds.

'Now… which one of you shall we try first?'

'Me!' Fred and George shouted together. They both gave each other annoyed looks. AJ giggled.

'How about we go with ladies first?' Mr Weasley suggested. 'AJ?'

AJ gave them a weak nod, which the tiwns copied more firmly as they sat back against the window sill. Mr Ollivander came out from behind the desk and nodded approvingly.

'Right then my dear, firstly, which is your wand arm?' he asked.

'My what... sir?' AJ asked in a small voice.

'Which hand do you write with AJ?' Mr Weasley simplified.

'Oh, my left.' replied AJ.

Mr Ollivander nodded again and indicated AJ's left arm. 'If you would, Miss...' AJ obliged and stuck out her arm while Ollivander pulled out a tape measure and began taking measurements. After a few moments, he stepped away and wrote something down on some parchment lying on the counter, while the tape measure hovered by itself and and continued to take its measurements. AJ gasped and jumped back in fright, causing Ollivander to turn sharply.

'Not used to this sort of thing are you?'

AJ flushed red again and shook her head bashfully. 'My family... they're not like me.' she mumbled, expecting some sort of hard look in return. But instead, the old man's misty eyes softened in understanding.

'I see. Not to worry m'dear, you've a great deal more to see than this.' he said, hurrying off behind the counter. He climbed the sliding ladder and took out a thin rectangular box. From it, he produced a thin, sleek black wand.

'Blackthorn, ten inches, a sturdy wand. Give it a try.' said Mr Ollivander, handing it to AJ. She held the thicker end in her hand, feeling the weight of it. It was weird, but it felt better than the rough sticks she used to play with by the creek. Nervously, she looked up at Ollivander's expectant eyes.

'Um, what do I do?'

'Give it a wave!' he replied insistently. AJ looked at the wand as if it would explode on her face, not helped by Fred and George purposely leaning right back into the window in caution. With determination, AJ firmly pointed the wand at a shelf behind the desk. All the boxes tumbled out, causing AJ to start in alarm. She mumbled an apology to Ollivander, who brushed it off and took out another box, while AJ placed the first wand on the counter.

.  
She was handed another; ivy, twelve inches, springy and good for charms. After withering the flowers on the counter, it was decided this wand as also not the one for her. Two more wands later and with no success, AJ was beginning to feel like she'd failed somehow. But Ollivander remained determined to find AJ's wand, telling her firmly that 'The wand chooses the wizard.' Whatever that meant...  
Upon trying a thin, mahogany wand with tiny vine patterns stemming from the dark-speckled handle, AJ didn't even get a chance to point it at anything, when a strange warm sensation ran up and down her arm. A flash of blue sparks appeared from the end of the wand, producing small tendrils of purple smoke that twirled in the air. AJ gasped in astonishment and swung round to face the Weasleys.

'Did you see that? I did something!' she shrieked. 'I did something!'

'Nice one!' Fred cheered.

'That was awesome!' George said, giving a short round of applause.

Mr Weasley chuckled. 'Fifth time's a charm, eh, AJ?' She turned back to Ollivander who was watching her with an oft-seen expression of curiosity on his wise, old face.

'Is this the right one, sir?' she asked hopefully. Ollivander scratched his stubbly beard in thought, and slowly, the old man nodded.

'A most interesting choice young lady.' Ollivander remarked, folding his arms. 'This wand in particular I do not sell very often, as it seeks wizards of strong moral standing. I see plenty of good work from this wand. You seem very keen to learn, and I can guarantee you that this wand will certainly aid it, if you are determined. Mind you keep a good hold of it, and yourself at that.' A kind smile graced his mouth, making all his wrinkles smile too. 'I believe this wand has chosen you as it's master. Or mistress, should I say, m'dear.' he added with a dry chuckle. He made his way back to his spot behind the counter and wrote down the details from the box.  
'Ten and a-quarter inches, mahoghany, with dragon heart-string core. Yes, very appropriate...' he muttered, as AJ breathed out a sigh of relief, examining her new wand with great pride.

Mr Weasley stood up and clapped his hands together triumphantly 'Well, congratulations AJ.' he said proudly. 'You are now officially a witch.'

* * *

.

**A/N: I'm back! Thank you jack63kids for your amazing reviews and feedback; you've really gotten me going again. I've got great plans for this story, and really want to keep it going.**

**In regards to the wand debate, I've been very careful over what wand "chooses" AJ. I've been tossing up for yonks whether she'd suit a Mahoghany, Maple or Black Walnut wand. This may change in future, especially as I want it to naturally suit AJ's character. I don't know about you, but a holly and phoenix-feather wand just seems to suit Harry perfectly. And I want it to be the same with AJ.  
You never know, she may need use of another wand in future, but let me know if you think Walnut or Maple will suit better!**

**Laters earthlings**


	6. First Flight

**Chapter 6: First Flight**

_"A person's a person, no matter how small."_

_Dr Seuss (Horton Hears a Who)_

* * *

AJ had never been so nervous about packing. After moving houses for more than half her life, a change of location wasn't much to be frightened of. But as she sat in her pajamas, folding the last of her clothes into her trunk, AJ realised with a jolting fear that for the first time ever, she'd be moving without her family. Nervous butterflies were already flying furiously in her stomach; a bundle of excited and nervous energy that she'd spent the entire day running around the house, trying to shake off. This was one new adventure that seemed more uncertain than ever.

A loud meow from the foot of her bed caused AJ to turn from her suitcase. Giggling, she spread herself out on the floor next to her new cat, Gomez, who was having a great deal of fun with one of her bed-cushions. AJ had recently returned to Diagon Alley in search of a pet, and had immediately taken a liking to the white and tabby kitten. Though since bringing him home, she had quickly hidden many breakable objects in her room as she discovered that Gomez was no less enthusiastic exploring her house than he was at the pet shop. Pulling him off the fraying pillow, AJ held Gomez to her chest and scratched his ears while she check-listed everything in her trunk, labelled in gold with her initials on the front: _AXW_. Since Diagon Alley, she'd already read through most of her schoolbooks, curious as ever; many a late, late night she'd let Samuel sneak into her room and together, would skim through a few of the more obscure books she'd acquired. AJ was thrilled that Samuel, like her mother, was taking such an interest in her strange new future, more enthusiastically than their father, who was still a little uncertain about the whole situation. With another determined mewl, Gomez climbed his way over AJ's shoulder onto her bed to play with her blue-owl backpack. Joining her cat on the bed, AJ rolled over to try and stop Gomez destroying her backpack, and a moment later she was met with the upside-down image of her brother standing in the doorway.

'Hey, monkey.'

'Hey.'

Samuel shook his head despondently as he watched Gomez gleefully attack another pillow. 'Your cat is seriously weird.' he said, leaning against the doorway.

AJ stroked Gomez' fur affectionately. 'Lucky for you, he's coming with me.'

'Thank God.' Samuel replied. 'You all packed?' he nodded at her full trunk. AJ hummed and hopped off the bed to close the lid. Samuel joined her on the floor and leaned against the bed.

'So, you feeling ready?'

AJ shrugged and mimicked her brother's position. 'I don't know. I can't believe I'm actually doing this.'

They spent a few moments in silence before AJ hugged her knees to her chest; 'I'll miss you. And Ma and Da.' Sam looked over at his little sister with concern. 'Are you worried because we won't be around?'

AJ didn't meet his eyes and shrugged again.

Samuel frowned. For someone so abnormally excitable, AJ had turned very quiet. He knew how jittery she was about going to a new and a _magical_ school at that; God knew he hadn't heard enough about it for the last month. But seeing his small little sister scared silent wasn't something he was used to, not even after all the pranks they'd pulled over the years.

'I'll miss you too, you know. I don't know how I'll bear the silence.' he joked, gaining a slap on the arm from AJ.

'Gau i fyny.' she muttered, unable to stop a smile. Samuel laughed and ruffled AJ's hair, gently pulling her into a bear-hug.

'Listen Aje, you're going to be fine. You've always been fine when we've moved. You've already got a few friends and whenever you want, you can write to us. I'll send you the football scores and everything if you want me too.' he reassured, tapping on her trunk. 'And you've got Doctor Seuss in there; he'll tell you what to do in the meantime, yeah?'

Chuckling, AJ looked up at her brother. '_"A person's a person, no matter how small._'

Samuel cracked an approving grin. 'Don't you let those wizards forget it.' A thoughtful grin spread across his fair face as he looked at her trunk.

'Hey monkey... promise me something?'

'What?'

He rubbed the back of his neck hesitantly. 'When you come back for Christmas, do you reckon you could show me some cool spells or something?'

AJ giggled and shook her head defiantly. 'Fred and George said you can't do magic outside of school. You can get expelled for that!'

Samuel had the decency to only look slightly disappointed. 'Oh, okay. Don't get expelled then.' he ruffled AJ's hair again. 'You should go to bed soon. We've got an early start, remember?'

His sister rolled her eyes. 'I know, I know. I'm all packed.'

Samuel raised his hands in surrender. 'Iawn ei, iawn ei. I'm not being Mam.' Just as he went to leave, AJ called him back in.

'Yeah, monkey?' he said.

AJ didn't meet her brother's eyes. 'How come you're not magical and I am?'

For a while, Samuel looked at the floor and said nothing, pondering AJ's difficult question. He put his hands in his pockets. 'I dunno, Sis. You must be pretty bloody lucky though.'

'I wish you could come to Hogwarts too.' AJ mumbled, this time meeting his green eyes.

Samuel gave a nonchalant shrug. 'Yeah. Well, you can tell me all about it when you get back.' he smiled encouragingly. 'Night, Sis. You've got a big adventure ahead of you.'

* * *

.

'Can you see them, _cariño_?' Helena asked. Jumping up and down a few times, AJ shook her head and huffed; Kings Cross station was a busy place. 'Not yet.'

This was it; AJ was going finally going to Hogwarts. Ever since they'd arrived in London after their long drive from Devon, she was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet. Her backpack sat over her shoulders and Gomez sat slightly disgruntled in his cage as she carried him, while her father pushed her trunk on a trolley, Helena and Samuel beside him. They were meeting the Weasleys at the Station so she stay on the train to Hogwarts with them.

Smirking at his little sister's height disadvantage, Samuel patted his shoulder. 'Hey Aje, hop on.' She didn't need telling twice; it was the last piggyback she'd probably get for a while, and after handing Gomez to her mother, AJ's view of the station was raised by several inches. Samuel had managed to get the Friday off school, even though he'd only been back for two weeks. Despite all his teenage annoyances, AJ supposed she really would miss him; over the years, he'd lead her on outdoor expeditions, watch football with her and let her experiment with whatever electrical appliances he would be fiddling around with at the time. He wasn't so bad to have around.

As soon as the sinking feeling of leaving her family settled in her stomach, it suddenly dissolved as AJ's face lit up. 'Hey, I see them!' she exclaimed, pointing over Samuel's shoulder.

Sliding off Samuel's back and reclaiming Gomez from her mother, AJ rushed towards the large group of talkative red-heads gathered by a cloakroom. 'AJ!' Ian called out as she disappeared in the crowd, but was reassured when Helena pointed out their daughter greeting five boys and a girl, all with red hair, and a kindly-looking woman who could only be their mother.

.

Mrs Weasley smiled when AJ's family joined them. 'Hello there! I'm Molly; I don't believe we've met.'

AJ's father shook her hand politely. 'Hi, I'm Ian, this is my wife Helena.'

'Arthur's terribly sorry he can't say hello to you again, he's had an urgent call from work.' Mrs Weasley told them. 'But he should be here soon to see the boys off, what with it being Fred and George's first year and all.'

'Mama, Da, these are Fred and George's brothers and sisters!' AJ announced, standing with the twins, who once again were sharing identical grins. Helena waved to the family.

'Hello Fred and George, hello everyone.'

'Hi AJ's mum!' the twins chorused. Their two older siblings and two younger siblings simply nodded, waved, or in the youngest girl's case, hid behind her mother's dress. Helena chuckled.

'Are these all your children Molly?' Ian asked, cautiously eyeing all the freckled red-heads standing together.

Mrs Weasley nodded. 'All but my eldest, Bill. He'll be joining us on the Platform. Bill's just graduated from Hogwarts, you see, Head Boy and all, can you believe?' she said proudly. 'Charlie's in Sixth Year, Percy's in Third Year, and Fred and George are starting out like AJ. It'll just be Ron and Ginny to go after them now, and that'll be all of them. Time flies, doesn't it?'

'Sure does.' Ian agreed.

Fred meanwhile, started tugging on his older brother's sleeve. 'Hey Charlie, meet AJ's brother!' he demanded.

'Yeah, he's your age too.' George added as AJ was pulling Samuel closer to the Weasley boys. The two sixteen year-olds, almost as tall and red-headed as each other stared silently for a moment, sizing each other up. Charlie was the first to offer a friendly hand.

'Charlie Weasley. How's it going?' Samuel shook the hand firmly with a smile, relieved that from his first impression, teenage wizards seemed to dress similarly in public.

'Alright, mate. I'm Samuel. You'll be looking out for my little sister, right?' he said, with a casual big-brother air.

Charlie nodded in agreement. 'Sure thing, if I'm not chasing after those two nut-heads.' he replied, pointing a thumb at the twins. 'Mum'd kill me.' The two boys laughed, as Fred, George and AJ shared proud looks of approval.

* * *

.

The Weasleys and Walshs small-talk was eventually interrupted when Percy pointed out that it was twenty-to-eleven. AJ gathered up Gomez and her belongings onto her trolley and felt her stomach fill up with butterflies again as she said goodbye to her family. After a long cuddle from her father, several hugs and kisses from her mother, and another bear-hug from Samuel, AJ waved goodbye to her family one more time.

'So where's the platform?' AJ asked the Weasleys. 'The ticket says nine and three quarters, but I've never seen that platform before.'

The twins smirked. 'You'll see.' they teased.

'Aw, why won't you tell me?' AJ demanded.

'Because we're nearly there.' said Charlie over his shoulder. They all slowed up in front of a large platform ticket barrier between a brick wall. Molly was sorting out her children, while little Ron and Ginny held onto her hands.

'Alright Charlie, you first, go with Fred. Percy, take George with you. Ron and Ginny and I will go with AJ.'

'Okay Mum. C'mon Fred.' Charlie said as Fred pushed his trolley next to his brother's.

'What are you doing?' AJ inquired. The ticket barrier said Platform 9 written on one side of the wall and Platform 10 on the other, how did they know that Platform Nine and Three-Quarters was here?

'Don't worry, we've done this heaps of times before.' said Fred.

'You'll be fine, just follow us.' George reassured.

'See you on the other side!' Fred called as Charlie gave the nod to move. The two brothers marched towards the ticket barrier, and in the blink of an eye, disappeared. AJ blinked again.

'What happened? Where are they?' she asked Mrs Weasley. Ron and Ginny were giggling at her shocked expression, but their mother shushed them.

'It's not funny, you two. AJ's never done this with Muggles, so stop it now and show her how to do it properly, or I'm leaving you behind!'

'But Muuuum…' Ron moaned. 'We were jokiiing. And Ginny started it.'

'Did not Ronald!' the little Weasley girl whined, poking her tongue out at Ron. Mrs Weasley sighed as Percy and George made their way towards the ticket barrier.

'Now that's enough, both of you.'

'See you soon AJ!' George called behind him, vanishing with Percy as quickly as Fred and Charlie had. AJ was too stunned to talk.

'It's alright, dear.' Mrs Weasley assured. 'All you've got to do is walk straight at the wall between the platforms and keep going. Just move quickly, and you'll be absolutely fine.'

'Okay.' AJ whispered. She looked up and down at the barrier, then back at Mrs Weasley.

'That's it. We'll be right behind you.' she assured, nodding her forward.

Turning around again, clutching the handle of her trolley with sweating hands, AJ pushed her heavy trunk forward with all her might, trying to keep it going straight. She was getting faster- her hands were slippery on the handlebars- she was getting closer- no one had crashed into her yet. AJ closed her eyes just as she hit the wall, but the impact never came. Gripping the trolley tighter, AJ managed to slow herself and peeked a look at where she was. When her eyes opened, they turned wide as saucers.

.

She was on another platform, a huge platform packed with hundreds of people. Dominating the crowd was a massive steam engine of gleaming scarlet, a familiar crest of animals on its front.  
'Whoa... you've got to be joking.' she whispered in amazement. Moving forward with the noisy jostling crowd, AJ passed a sign hanging above her that read: _Hogwarts Express. 11 O'clock. Platform Nine and Three-Quarters._ She was here, she was really here- and there was the Hogwarts Express, ready to take her to school. She laughed out loud, as Mrs Weasley, Ron and Ginny joined her from behind.

'Well done AJ!' Mrs Weasley congratulated as she guided AJ's trolley up the platform through the masses of parents and children. 'What do you think?'

'It's incredible! _¡Dios mío!_' she exclaimed, looking around and all the witches and wizards in their robes.

'This is just the beginning, dear.' Mrs Weasley told her cheerfully. 'Oh, there they are!' She pointed out her sons a bit further down the platform, who were with Mr Weasley and another tall red-head, loading their trunks onto one of the carriages. Seeing her coming their way, Fred and George raced over to AJ.

'You survived!'

'What'd you think?'

'How did we do that?!' AJ exclaimed.

The twins just smirked. 'Magic.' they chorused, as if it was obvious. 'This is Bill.' they added, pointing to the unfamiliar red-head. Bill, obviously the eldest Weasley child, looked a great deal like his brothers, with longer red hair, warm eyes and a friendly smile.

'How's it going, AJ? I hear you're starting at Hogwarts too.' he said, leaning against one of his brother's trunks. AJ stared up at him and nodded dumbly. Bill chuckled.

'Well have fun then, and don't get into too much trouble with these two. I'm sure I'll see you around sometime.' He gave her a wave and hugged the twins goodbye. Charlie and Percy shook their father's hand and kissed their mother's cheek before hopping onto the train. Mr Weasley beamed as he noticed AJ among his sons.

'Ah, AJ! Good to see you again! Excited?'

AJ nodded, still rather wide-eyed and smiling. 'Yep. I can't wait!' she squeaked. Mr Weasley nodded wisely.

'Well, it's an experience, particularly for someone as adventurous as you. You'll have an amazing time.' he patted the side of her head and squeezed her shoulder affectionately. 'Good luck my dear, have fun! We'll see you at Christmas!'  
All too soon, AJ was being pulled onto the train by Fred and George. In the doorway, Mrs Weasley was kissing all of her sons. After several stern warnings to the twins, Mrs Weasley wrapped AJ in an engulfing hug.

'Mum! Don't crush her!' George cried.

'She's not even at Hogwarts yet!' Fred exclaimed.

'Now you be safe, dear, the boys will all look out for you.' she told AJ. 'Remember, there'll be lots of other kids like you, so you'll all be in the same boat. And if you need anything, anything at all, ask your House prefects, or the boys, or you can write to us, we'll be-'

AJ quickly returned the hug, cutting her off. 'Thank you, Mrs Weasley! For everything!'

Mrs Weasley chuckled. 'Oh, you're welcome. You're going to have the most wonderful time.' The shrill whistle of a guard sounded in the distance, and steam billowed from the train's engine. AJ quickly joined the twins in their compartment, while Mrs and Mrs Weasley waved their goodbyes with Bill, Ron and Ginny.

'Have a good term!' Mr Weasley shouted as the train started to move. The twins and AJ all leaned out of the window and waved until the train approached a dark tunnel and rounded the bend. Behind them, Charlie tapped on their compartment door and crossed his arms.

'Now, are you three going to be alright here?'

'We'll be fine.' the twins answered him.

'Just checking. Don't go trying to hex anyone.' he ordered sternly. 'I'll be further up the train if you need anything, but I'll come check on you once the food trolley's come by. Hopefully you'll have made a few friends by then. Behave.' And giving them one last wink, Charlie set off up the carriage.

.

Sitting down by the window, AJ let Gomez out of his cage to play with a woolly toy, while Fred and George pulled several strange purple cards from their pockets. Rummaging through her backpack, AJ smiled in triumph as she found what she'd been looking for. Pulling it out, she swiveled round to Fred and George.

'Hey guys, say cheese!' the boys both turned, their expressions confused as they heard a whir and a click.

'What was that?'

'Camera. It's a disposable, but my family gave it to me last night so I can take photos of Hogwarts and stuff!' AJ explained, taking a quick picture of the outer London landscape from the window. The twins looked fascinated by the little black device.

'That's a camera?' George asked, leaning forward on his elbows. 'Like a real Muggle camera?

'Good thing you didn't tell Dad, he loves Muggle technology.' said Fred. 'Collects batteries and engines and everything; Mum reckons it's mental.

AJ giggled. 'It's not really; I'll have to show you the rest of our house sometime. It'd all be "Muggle" to you.'

'Yeah, but first we gotta get you into wizarding world.' George pointed out.

'Not long now.' Fred added.

* * *

.

'So, what else do you want to know?' Fred asked her half an hour later. They'd discussed Sorting and school Houses again, apparently Fred and George were almost as clueless as AJ when it came to the Sorting ceremony at Hogwarts, because their brothers had all traditionally kept it secret from each younger sibling.

'Um…' AJ was struggling to come up with one single question, she was more interested in trying the chocolate frogs that the twins' cards had come from.

'We could go over Quidditch again.' George suggested.

'Or moving photographs.'

'Or why I'm the better looking twin.'

'Shut up, you are not!' Fred retorted.

Their bickering was interrupted by a boy, shorter than the twins, with coffee-brown skin and a mass of dark frizzy hair. He looked at the three of them with big black eyes.

'Hey, um, are you guys first years?'

'Yeah. Want to join us?' George offered.

The boy's shoulders sunk with relief. 'Yeah, thanks. I was already in a compartment with some first years, but I think they're all bound for Slytherin. So I moved.'

'And where are you hoping to go then?' Fred challenged cautiously before the boy could sit down. He shrugged.

'Dunno, anywhere but Slytherin. Gryffindor or Hufflepuff'd be alright. Mum says I haven't got the head for Ravenclaw.'

'A potential Gryffindor!' Fred exclaimed. 'Sit him down right now, George!'

The boy grinned, but took a step back towards the door. 'D'you mind? There's a few more first years who haven't got anywhere to sit. They're alright.'

AJ nodded, keen on meeting other classmates. 'Sure! Where are they?'

The boy leaned back out the doorway again. 'Hey Jon! Found somewhere for you!' he called, and seconds later, a boy with a mop of curly brown hair and piercing blue eyes was followed by a girl with a pleasant smile and long dark braids bouncing behind her. She smiled brightly as the two other boys let her through.

'Hiya. We couldn't find anywhere else.' she said with a strong Liverpudlian accent.

'Squeeze in then.' said Fred.

They did so, AJ moving Gomez onto her lap to give them room. 'Thanks.' The curly-haired boy said. 'I'm Jonathan, this is Amanda.'

'And I'm Lee, Lee Jordan.' the dark-skinned boy added with a flashing grin. 'What're your names?

'Fred-'

'-And George Weasley.'

'AJ.'

'You lot related then?'

AJ shook her head. 'They are, I'm just a friend.'

'Cool. So what house you guys hoping to be in?'

* * *

.

And so, the conversations continued, from house-hopes, families, Quidditch teams (Jonathan, like AJ had grown up without magic, and therefore didn't have one), and pets (Gomez had taken a particular shining to Amanda). By the time a kindly old woman came by with the food trolley, they were joined by a friend of Lee's, a shy blonde girl called Isolde, who couldn't find her older sister's compartment. They talked, laughed, took photos on AJ's camera and played a few particularly noisy rounds of Exploding Snap, while Jonathan and AJ taught them a few Muggle card games. For most of the trip, there were few interruptions from outside the compartment, other than Charlie coming to check on them, only to discover several more people in the compartment than earlier, and Lee Jordan trying to eat Liquorice Wands dangling from braids in his hair. Some some particularly rowdy fifth years also thought it'd be fun to try and scare them by sending weather hexes their way, only to have leftover Cauldron Cakes thrown in their faces, aided by Gomez, who hissed at teenagers before sliding off the end of the seat onto a squashed cake, which he then tried to eat.

As the train moved into more dense countryside, the seven new friends dispersed to change into their robes. The sky was dark by the time they pulled into Hogsmeade Station, with backpacks and pets collected for the station guards. Sticking close together, they huddled through the many taller students heading down the cold, narrow platform. They eventually found their way towards a booming voice.  
FIRS'-YEARS! This way, Firs'-years over here!' Joining a larger group of kids their age, AJ gasped as she gazed up at a man who was easily the most gigantic person she had ever seen. A bushy black beard covered the man's face, easily getting lost in his thick brown coat. He looked over their heads to count them off with beady black eyes, ignoring the various stares he was getting from the people around AJ. A few kids shouted some friendly greetings to him as they passed by, which he returned with cheerful waves of his massive hands.

'Alright then. That seems to be the lot of you. Welcome then! Let's get going.' he boomed cheerfully, leading the way down the platform gate.

'You're Hagrid, aren't you?' George piped up suddenly.

'Yeah, Charlie and Percy told us about you!' Fred added.

'Who said tha'?' the giant asked, finally resting his eyes on the twins. 'Hang on, red hair, you must be Weasley brothers. Poppin' out of the woodwork, you lot are.' he muttered. 'Alright Firs'-Years, off we go! To the boats!'

'Boats?' AJ whispered as she was jostled around by the small group of first years. 'What are they for?'

'To get to the castle,' Lee Jordan whispered. 'It's how the first years usually do it.' Walking down a lantern-lit path, AJ spotted from the front of the group many small wooden boats floating by a dock.

'Alright, no more than four to a boat! Be careful now getting' in!' Hagrid told them, getting into one of his own. AJ quickly scrambled into one with the twins and Lee, while Jonathan, Amanda and Isolde got into the boat next to them with a boy whose face was beginning to look as ashen as his fair hair. Once everyone was settled, Hagrid pulled out a pink umbrella from inside his coat and called out: 'Forward!' At once, the boats all started gliding forward, causing a few squeals from the girls. They moved in formation across an enormous black lake, passing a few trees and large shadows on shore. After hearing whisperings of mermaids and a giant squid from some of the other boats, AJ looked around at the water cautiously; magical creatures in the lake was definitely something to look out for. Just as she was just pulling her camera out of her robe, Hagrid announced, 'Ye'll be getting yer firs' look at the castle in a sec. Right up there!' He pointed ahead of the sheets of willow branches that opened for them. And for the first time since Diagon Alley, AJ gasped as she gazed up at the giant Hogwarts Castle.

* * *

.

Gau i fyny - shut up (Welsh)

iawn ei - alright (Welsh)

cariño - love, affectionately (Spanish)

¡Dios mío – Oh my god! (Spanish)

uffern gwaedlyd – bloody hell (Welsh)

**Hi. Words cannot describe how ashamed I am for not updating sooner. It's been far too long for me to pause a story I love this much. This and chapter 7 have been lingering for ages, and were nearly complete until the tragic USB disappearance of June 2012. I sadly lost over 100 pages of fanfictions in progress, and 4 years' worth of original stuff that either weren't backed up, or were backed up as early drafts. So, after my period of mourning, it was back to notebooks and emailed drafts. It probably needs proofing. I'll get back onto that after exams though, trust me.**

**I am determined to wrap up Part 1 of LLNO in a few months, so I can really dig into the rest of AJ's story. Give some feedback and stay tuned!**

**G.**


	7. Great Halls and Gryffindors

**Chapter 7: Great Halls and Gryffindors**

_"I meant what I said, and I said what I meant._  
_An elephant's faithful, one hundred percent."_

_Dr Seuss (Horton Hears a Who)_

* * *

The sight was breathtaking. Above the magnificent sheet of black water was the most enormous castle AJ had ever seen. Stone towers and turrets reached into the sky, softened by little windows of light that smiled next to the stars. Beyond the black lake, silhouettes of mountain ridges brooded in the distance, watching carefully as the First Years entered Hogwarts.

In her amazement, AJ shook her head, unsure if what she was seeing was real. Lee Jordan's repeated whispers of "bloody hell" confirmed that it was. She glanced over at Fred and George, whose eyes were both round as dinner plates. Silently, AJ pulled her camera out of her pocket and in her haste, took a quick photo of the castle, knowing she wouldn't get another opportunity like this for a while, if ever. Behind those walls, she imagined, were massive rooms, never-ending hallways, and all sorts of wonderful mysteries; something she would now spend the next seven years exploring. Lee's voice once again pulled her from her thoughts, and she looked behind her to see what he was pointing at. The water around them rippled and the boats began to sway, when from beneath the surface, not one, but three gigantically long tentacles appeared from below the surface and started flicking water in the student's direction.

.

Reaching an underground harbour, the First Years clambered out of the boats and followed Hagrid up a winding path to a tall pair of oak doors. There was another collective gasp as he led them into the Entrance Hall. Tapestries and stately portraits hung from the walls, with flaming torches lighting the hall all the way to the beginnings of a grand staircase. Only the rumbling echoes of the students' footsteps and voices could be heard.

'What happens now?' AJ finally asked the twins, who were inspecting their surroundings with fascination; no doubt comparing the real thing to their brother's past descriptions. George shook his head.

'No idea.' he murmured. 'I'm pretty sure we get sorted in the Great Hall though- that's where everyone else is.'

'I guess we wait and see.' Fred added, staring expectantly at the double doors ahead of them.

The doors in question opened suddenly, and a tall, stern-looking witch approached them. It took AJ a moment to realise it was Professor McGonagall, only this time she wore long robes of deep emerald and amber, with a large pointy hat upon her head. Hagrid did not appear to be phased by McGonagall's serious appearance at all.

'Evenin' Professor; the Firs'-Years for ye.' he informed her with a nod, which she returned curtly.

'Thank you Hagrid, I will take them from here.'

Hagrid looked down at the group who were watching the exchange with curiosity and a hint of worry. He raised a giant hand in farewell. 'See you lot in a bit then, don't get into any trouble now.'

The First Years all turned their attention to Professor McGonagall. She did not smile.

'Welcome to Hogwarts. In a few moments time, you will join the rest of the school in the Great Hall, but before you take your seats, you shall be sorted into your houses- a very important ceremony. The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin; all with their own prestigious histories that for centuries, have produced several outstanding wizards and witches.'  
'At Hogwarts, your houses become like your families; you attend classes with your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend time in your common rooms. Your achievements shall gain you house points, and any rule-breaking will result in the loss of points. At the end of the year, one of these houses will win the House Cup.' Her sharp eyes scanned the silent group for any indication of a question or interruption. 'Very well then, we're ready for you now. Form a line please; and I suggest you smarten yourselves up a little.'

The first-years hastily moved to form a scraggly line behind her, trying to fix up their uniforms at the same time. Lee smoothed down his frizzy hair, Isolde and Amanda checked each other over, Fred and George pretended to wipe something off each other's faces, Jonathan pulled his socks up, while AJ, standing in front of him, tugged at her overlarge robes. At the clap of Professor McGonagall's hands, the pair of double doors she had entered from opened, revealing the Great Hall.

* * *

AJ almost forgot to take a breath; this place was even more spectacular than the Entrance Hall; flaming cauldrons and thousands of candles floated in mid-air, illuminating hundreds of students who sat at four long tables. The tables stretched down to the front of the hall where the staff was seated. Fred and George grinned as they spotted Charlie and Percy waving to them from the table on the far left. In wonder, AJ raised her head and gaped when she saw the ceiling; an endless starry black sky. It wasn't until Jonathan nudged her, that AJ realised she must have paused mid-step to take it all in.

The First Years huddled close together as Professor McGonagall placed a four-legged stool in front of them. From behind her, she produced a very old and very dirty pointed hat. AJ couldn't see over the heads of her peers, but through a gap, she noticed that the students were looking at it with anticipation. After a moment of absolute silence, a rip in the hat opened at the brim, and in a sonorous voice began to sing. AJ jumped back behind the twins in fright, unsure if it was set to explode. However, as its song went on, the hat's purpose slowly became clear to AJ and her fellow peers.

'So that's it.' George exclaimed. 'It's a Sorting Hat!'

Fred looked over his shoulder with a scowl. 'I knew Charlie was lying, the git!' he muttered.

AJ breathed a sigh of relief, glad that she wouldn't have to do any magic yet. But the idea of being sorted in front of the entire school sent her heart into her throat. What would the hat say about her, if it could see her mind? Was there even a house for people who didn't know how to do magic? What if the hat said there had been a mistake?

.

When the Sorting Hat's song ended, Professor McGonagall unrolled a long scroll of parchment. She addressed the first years. 'When I call your name, you will come forth, I will place the Sorting Hat on your head, and you shall be sorted into your house.' she looked down at the scroll for the first name. 'Ashdown, Cassandra.'

A willowy girl with dusty-blonde hair and bluish eyes was already standing at the front of the group, and took a deep breath as she glided up the stairs. She glanced at Professor McGonagall cautiously, and sat on the stool, where McGonagall placed the large hat over her head.

'What happens now?' AJ whispered to the twins. They shrugged and watched Cassandra Ashdown, who was silent and sitting very still, as were the rest of the students looking the hat expectantly. AJ was about to ask Fred and George another question, when the hat opened its brim and shouted,

'RAVENCLAW!'

Cassandra smiled triumphantly and rose to take her seat at the table second from the left, where the students were applauding and cheering loudly. The first-years joined in on the applause for the first sorted student in their year.

'Bartram, Yolanda.' McGonagall called. This time, a girl with a choppy bob of dark hair had the hat placed on her head.

'HUFFLEPUFF!' the hat shouted.

The table on the far right exploded with cheers and whistles as Yolanda Bartram joined the Hufflepuffs.

'Belgrave-Vance, Harriet.'

A pale girl with curly brown braids squeezed the hand of the girl next to her, and made her way to the stool with a look of determination. Fred and George eyed her curiously.

'Mum and Dad know the Vance's, don't they?'

'Yeah, they go way ba-'

'GRYFFINDOR!'

The twin's faces lit up as Harriet was declared the year's first Gryffindor and clapped along with the far left table where Charlie and Percy were. The order of the sorting seemed perfectly random, until the next student, 'Bletchley, Stephen' was called up. AJ's heart dropped into her stomach.

'Aw, no.' she muttered.

The twins looked her way. 'What is it?'

'They're going in alphabetical order.' AJ groaned quietly. 'I'll be last, I'm always last.'

'No you're not.' Fred replied.

'Weasley comes after Walsh.' George added.

AJ quirked an eyebrow. '_Xavier_-Walsh.' she huffed.

Both boys went to reply, but held their breaths when they both realised her point. AJ wrapped her arms around herself; she didn't like waiting around for things, and waiting for at least another forty people to get sorted before her was doing nothing for her nerves. She felt for the puffer in her pocket next to her camera, hoping with all her might that she didn't freak out enough to bring on an asthma attack. She'd held them off fairly well considering all the surprises the wizarding world had brought her so far. Behind her, Jonathan tugged on the sleeve of her robe. Looking around, AJ saw he was staring ahead blankly, looking as pale and anxious as she was. She reached out to hold his wrist while he kept his grip on her sleeve for mutual support, clapping politely while 'Cochrane, Sylvia' joined Bletchley in Slytherin.

* * *

.

Before they knew it, McGonagall had called, 'Ingleby, Jonathan'. He was only on the stool for half a minute when the hat opened its brim and shouted, 'RAVENCLAW!'

AJ, Fred, George, Lee and Isolde all applauded him with Amanda whistling in excitement as a giddy grin spread across Jonathan's face. 'Johnson, Angelina.' went to Gryffindor right before 'Jordan, Lee' was called up. The students all laughed when he jumped up to the stool so eagerly that he slipped off before the hat had even reached his head. Undeterred, Lee let out a gleeful whoop as he too was sorted into Gryffindor.

"Kirke", "Lloyd-Callaghan", and then finally, "Lovell, Amanda". She managed a shaky smile as the hat went over her trembling head. It wasn't long however, before it proudly cried, 'RAVENCLAW!' Still trembling with excitement, Amanda raced over to the Ravenclaw table and was greeted with several congratulations and a delighted high-five handshake from Jonathan. After Fergus Macmillan and Isolde Matheson (no longer looking nervous) both went to Hufflepuff, the sorting almost seemed to go too fast.

'Panshawe, Nicholas.'

'GRYFFINDOR!'

'Pendragon, Colin.'

'HUFFLEPUFF!'

'Phillips, Bartholomew.'

RAVENCLAW!'

'Quigley, Jessica.'

It was the girl from Ollivanders. 'Hey, remember her?' George whispered to AJ. She nodded in response, giving Jessica a quick smile when she passed them.

'Quigley.' Fred muttered. 'As in, Aidan Quigley, the Irish Quidditch player?'

'Must be related.' George agreed, as Jessica was sorted into Hufflepuff. AJ still had no idea who they were talking about. She stayed focused on the Sorting.

* * *

.

There were only five students left. Vanessa Urquhart had just gone to Slytherin, when McGonagall finally called: 'Weasley, Fred.'

For a second, Fred didn't move, eyeing the hat from the steps, before George practically shoved him to the stool. The hat was only on his head for a few seconds, when… 'GRYFFINDOR!'

Fred punched the air in victory as he leaped off the stool in excitement, heralded with the loudest whoops and cheers by his brothers at the Gryffindor table, who gave him a standing ovation. Before his twin had even sat down, George practically dived for the stool, looking just as hopeful that he'd join all his older brothers in the same house. As quickly as it had sorted Fred, the hat called him 'GRYFFINDOR!'

In elation, George mirrored his brother's actions and punched the air as his brothers stood yet again, cheering him on in a blaze of red hair and smiles. On his way to the Gryffindor table, he gave AJ a supportive pat on the shoulder. Anxiously, AJ looked behind her; there was only her and a very patient-looking boy left. He had to have been patient, to know he would probably be the last in line. And if he knew he'd be last, then that meant that the next person up would be-

'Xavier-Walsh, AnnaJo.'

AJ froze. No one outside her family called her by her real first name. Her heart was suddenly pounding in her ears, her stomach was in knots, and she didn't know how to breathe; it felt like she was being called on by the school principal and getting busted by her mother all at the same time. From the Gryffindor table, the Fred and George looked at each other with bemused expressions. 'AnnaJo?' they whispered, puzzled by the name.

On shaky legs, AJ stepped up to the front; glad when McGonagall continued to hold the hat as she wasn't sure she wanted to touch it. Realising that the rickety wooden stool was higher than she'd first thought, AJ got a foothold on one of the legs and did a small jump to sit up properly, eliciting a few laughs from some of the older students. Already pink in the cheeks, AJ steadied herself as McGonagall placed the hat on her head. It slid over her eyes, and AJ breathed in the musty smell of old material. She braced herself for the worst, when she heard a tiny little voice in her ear.

_'So many thoughts. Curious.'_

AJ started. 'Curiouser and curiouser.' she thought in response, the phrase from _Alice in Wonderland _stuck firmly in the forefront of her mind. 'Are you in my head?' she whispered to the hat.

_'Indeed. And already, I must say, you are proving very hard to place.'_

'Can you put me somewhere, at least?' AJ asked the hat silently.

The hat appeared to chuckle._ 'Certainly. Let's see then… You have a great deal of other knowledge in you; very inquisitive explorer… Ravenclaw might serve you well, provided you maintain the desire to work of course, but- no… your ambitions are simplistic, no burning goals of yet. Not an ideal fit for Slytherin, I might think; competitive- yes, but too fair-minded to strive for such ends. You've a concern for others, and love to chase dreams… now, I see Hufflepuff would greatly benefit from a team player like you. What an outstanding Hufflepuff you'd be of your peers…'_ the hat paused for a moment, and AJ screwed her eyes shut tighter. _'Oh? No… but you're more than that are you? Too much fire in your spirit I see, what with that attitude. You're certainly an adventurous soul... my, my, so many strengths to play with; you are indeed becoming a dilemma.'_

'What do you mean?' AJ hissed out of the corner of her mouth. 'Can't you just put me somewhere?' she thought of Jonathon and Amanda in Ravenclaw, and Isolde in Hufflepuff. Her parents had told her the values of loyalty, fairness, wisdom and diligence, and both houses seemed to stand for all of those. She could well go there, but… she thought of Lee and the twins in Gryffindor with Percy and Charlie. Gryffindor- the brave house. That sounded good too. She knew she didn't want to be in Slytherin, she'd already heard things about people in that house, and she wasn't sure she wanted to be part of that kind of group. There was so much she wanted to do already, so much of Hogwarts to explore, to be a part of, to enjoy, to find challenges in, so much time to spend with the friends she'd made already, and many more…

_'Well then, girl,'_ the Sorting Hat interrupted slyly. _'Your mind is becoming much clearer now, very excitable, I see. I think my decision will prove very fair. Better be…'_

'GRYFFINDOR!'

.

In that moment, AJ felt lighter than air. She let out the massive breath she didn't know she'd been holding and grinned from ear to ear. When the hat was lifted off her head, the first thing she heard was a ruckus of noise, and the first thing she saw were the students from the far left table clapping and cheering and whistling, all led by a troop of beaming red-heads near the front. With a renewed spring in her step, AJ set off down the steps, passing the lone boy on her way. She had the decency to look a tad sheepish after what felt like an eternity being sorted.

'Sorry I took so long.'

The boy merely shrugged. 'It's fine. I figured I'd be last.' he mumbled in reply.

'Good luck.' AJ whispered, jogging all the way to the front of the table to Fred, George, Lee, and a few other first years. They all congratulated her as she took her seat among them. Percy nodded and mouthed a 'Well done' to her from further up the table, and opposite him, Charlie gave her an encouraging wink. AJ stopped herself blushing by collecting high-fives from the twins.

'Nice work, AJ!'

'Knew you'd be one of us!'

'Thanks.' AJ replied, swiveling around to see the last boy, Zachary Yuhlman, sorted into Slytherin and ending the sorting ceremony. She applauded him regardless; he'd had to wait even longer than her to gain a place at Hogwarts, and now he had one too.

* * *

.

With everyone finally in their rightful seats, the buzz and rumble of chatter from the students died down once again as a tall man with a silver-white beard, in sweeping gold robes rose from his seat, making him seem even more powerful and mystifying than he was before. This man, AJ knew from her new chocolate frog collection, was Professor Albus Dumbledore; Headmaster of Hogwarts School. He raised his hands to silence everybody, and smiled across at all the faces looking to him.

'Welcome, welcome, one and all!' he began cheerfully. 'To our new students, a special greeting to you, and to our old hands, it is good to have you back. I trust that your holidays have been restful and refreshing, and that you are all enthused and prepared for another year of learning and enjoyment. But- I shall leave those formalities until later. For now, as the old saying goes- eat and be merry!'

AJ was sure she'd missed something. The plates and goblets on the tables had been empty when she'd taken her seat. The smell of hot food reached her in an instant, and, blinking twice, she realised the platters around her were suddenly full of food. She didn't realise how hungry being nervous had made her, and eagerly tucked in. As she chatted with Lee, all the Weasleys, and Harriet, the girl who'd been sorted earlier, AJ kept catching herself staring at everything around her; the simple magic in the atmosphere, the glow of the candles, the roar and clatter of students laughing and eating, all of it. Just when she thought she couldn't be surprised anymore, something pearly-white and translucent rose from the pile of bread-rolls AJ was reaching for. It was a human head. And when it smiled and greeted her hello, AJ dropped her bread-roll with a squeak of surprise.

'What the…?'

'So sorry, dear lady- should have introduced myself earlier.' The white-thing in the ruff and tights explained as he rose above the table.

'Wait a moment,' George interrupted, staring up at the ghost.

'You're Nearly-Headless Nick!' Fred finished for his brother. AJ stared at him. Nearly-Headless Nick cleared his throat a little indignantly.

'Yes, well, I prefer Sir Nicholas, if you don't mind.'

'Sir Nicholas?' AJ wondered aloud. 'As in, Father Christmas?'

The ghost chuckled. 'Why no, of course not. I am the resident ghost of Gryffindor House. The other house ghosts are over there, see?' he pointed to the other tables, where dozens of other pearly ghosts of all dispositions were entertaining and gliding in between (or through) the students.

AJ shook her in disbelief and returned to her mash potato. 'Curiouser and curiouser.' she muttered.

* * *

.

Even with all the lunches and dinners she'd shared with her family, AJ had never had such a good night of eating. Dumbledore had risen to speak once again, warning students of the Forbidden Forest and other restricted areas and school rules, which the twins responded to with an already-familiar glints in their eyes. When they were dismissed, two older students called up the First Year Gryffindors and introduced themselves as Cyrus Kolby and Nadine Castlereagh, their Fifth Year prefects. Winding through several other students, the two of them showed the First Years up the hallways to the grand staircase. AJ felt giddy just looking at all the different stairways, not only were they numerous, but they moved too. So too did the portraits on the wall, waving, smiling, even travelling to other people's paintings from floor to floor. Finally, they arrived at Gryffindor Tower on the seventh floor in front of a portrait of a fat lady in a frilly pink gown.

'Password?'

'Phoenix Feather.' Cyrus and Nadine answered simultaneously. AJ took note to remember the password as she and the First Years entered a circular room draped with deep red and gold curtains and tapestries, with squashy couches, sturdy wooden chairs and a roaring fireplace. They all huddled in the centre of the room.

'This is the Gryffindor Common Room, everyone.' Nadine told them. 'You can spend free time here, study here, and most importantly, sleep here.'

'The boy's dormitories are up those stairs and the first door to your left.' Cyrus pointed to the stairwell behind him. 'And the girl's dorms are the first door to the right on the stairs. Your belongings are already up there, so all you need to do now is choose a bed and settle in. Come find us down here if you've got any questions.'

And with that, the First Years rushed to find their rooms.

...

AJ had decided that after only half an hour in her new dormitory that she liked it. Sure enough, their trunks and other belongings were lined against a wall, as were their various pets. Gomez the cat had already made a point in deciding which bed would be AJ's, eagerly tackling a fluffy pillow right off the edge of the bed in his excitement. Now she found herself partially unpacked, in her pajamas, and sitting on one of the beds with Gomez in her lap, and a box of Bertie Botts shared between her and her four new roommates.

'Alright then.' said the tall girl who'd been sorted right before Lee, 'How about, we all go round, say... our full name and where we're from. To get to know each other, y'know?'

'I'll start!' Harriet, the girl with curly brown braids said, her dark grey eyes shining enthusiastically. 'Okay, so hi; I'm Harriet Octavia Belgrave-Vance, and I'm from Falkirk, in Scotland.'

The tanned girl on her right snorted. 'Octavia? How'd you get Octavia?'

'It was my gran's name. She was a witch too.' Harriet answered proudly. 'Your turn.' she said to the tanned girl.

'I'm Alicia Louise Spinnet, and I'm from Ealing. London.' she added with a smile, looking to the lanky blond girl on her right. 'Your turn.'

The blond girl sat up a little more and eased against one of the bed bannisters. 'I'm Kirstin Rachel Eggleston, but everyone calls me Kirsty. Oh yeah, and I'm from Northumberland.' she added, looking to AJ. 'What about you?'

AJ smirked as she scratched Gomez's ears. 'Well, I've got a lot of names.' She took a dramatically deep breath. 'My full name is AnnaJo Elizabeth Marigold Jacqueline Xavier-Walsh.'

The girls all gasped and laughed. 'Whoa!' Kirsty giggled. 'That's super-long!'

AJ shrugged, trying not to blush again. 'Yeah, but no one ever calls me AnnaJo, it's just AJ. And I'm from Cardiff, but I live in Devon now.'

'How the heck is your name so long?' Harriet exclaimed, causing AJ to shrug again.

'My Da's family's like that. My brother's got three middle names too.'

'That is right weird.' the girl on her right said.

'I know.' AJ groaned. 'And it's your turn anyway, lucky last.'

'Cool. Well, I'm Angelina May Johnson, and I'm from Harrow.'

There was a pause as the girls stared at her. 'What, that's it?' Alicia said.

Angelina looked confused. 'What's it?'

'Your middle name.'

Leaning back against the headboard, Angelina crossed her arms. 'Well we can't all have an alphabet like AJ!'

Kirsty let out a quiet giggle. 'Alphabet AJ-' she giggled again, 'That's good!'

'Aw, no!' AJ laughed, knowing that she would now be on the receiving end of a fresh onslaught of nicknames. But with these four girls, as they talked and giggled and threw pillows at each other, AJ figured that no matter what crazy names they came up with for each other, they'd be pretty fun people to share the next seven years with.

* * *

**A/N: What is this? An update? Why yes earthlings, look who's back! So sorry for the last few months- I've been studying, starting new websites, studying, performing, studying... you get the picture. I'm on a three week break, so I've been fanfic-editing like you wouldn't believe.**

**To those inquiring about AJ's name; there you have it. To those trying to work out the pattern in my chapter titles: umm... there you have it?  
****To my regulars, editing notes are most welcome- you know how I forget things.  
Aaand to the rest of you, let me know in the box below what you think of the canon and other OC's so far.**

**Until we meet again...  
**

**G. :D**


	8. Hotfooted Happenings

**Chapter 8: Hotfooted Happenings**

_"From there to here, and here to there, funny things are everywhere."_

_Dr Seuss (One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish) _

* * *

AJ slumped against the cold wall, breathing heavily. Several paces ahead of her were Fred and George, sprinting down the empty second floor corridor. They were exactly two minutes late for their first Charms lesson, and unable to find the classroom. It shouldn't have been difficult; the trio had had a whole weekend after the welcoming feast to start exploring the inner channels of Hogwarts (but AJ had insisted on revisiting the lake first), and Charlie and Percy Weasley had been very helpful in offering directions (the twins, however, had insisted they could navigate by themselves), and Professor McGonagall had given them their timetables on Monday (which Gomez the cat had mistaken for a midnight snack). And so, it was now on AJ's third day of class that she found herself completely lost.

'Hey guys, wait!' she called, dropping her bag to the ground with a thud. Fred and George in their tracks and turned around.

'What's up?' George asked, appearing at her side in a flash.

AJ lifted her head off the wall and rolled her eyes. 'I think we're lost.'

'No, we're not.' Fred insisted.

'So where are we then?'

The twins both shrugged and checked their surroundings. 'Second floor?' they guessed.

AJ's head hit the wall again. 'I thought Flitwick's room was on the third floor.'

The twins grinned optimistically. 'Don't worry, we'll find it.'

'Now come on!'

And linking AJ's arms with their own, the three of them set off down the hall.

.

Five minutes and several uncooperative staircases later, the trio were back at the first stairway they'd started at- one that took them from the second floor straight to the fourth.

'This is ridiculous.' AJ groaned, taking another quick breath from her puffer. 'How big is this castle anyway?'

'Huge.'

'Gigantic.'

AJ glanced down the empty corridor, full of moving portraits and idle tapestries. 'How are we meant to find our way around?' She leaned back on a tapestry of Andros the Invincible, but realised too late that there was nothing behind it. With a loud squeal, AJ fell backwards and disappeared through the wall.

'AJ!' the twins shouted. Fred managed to lift the bottom corner of the tapestry, while George tried looking past him.

'Where are you?'

'I don't know. In here!' was the muffled response. Her next words were excited. 'You've _got_ to come see this.' Fred and George exchanged anticipating glances and stepped through the gap in the wall. They were met with AJ dusting herself off in the middle of a small shadowy chamber hazed in dim yellowy light. The reverse end of the tapestry they'd stepped through hung behind them, with another tapestry curtained across where the wall should have been. Fred, George and AJ surveyed the space, slightly confused.

'What is this?' murmured Fred.

'I don't know- some kind of storeroom?' AJ suggested, poking the solid wall to her left.

'But there's nothing in here.' Fred pointed out.

George rapped his knuckles on the opposite wall and frowned. 'Charlie never said anything about the tapestries being tricky. And he'd know a few shortcuts.'

AJ tentatively approached the other tapestry. 'What do you reckon's on the other side?'

Fred stepped forward. 'Only one way to find out.' he said. George stepped up next to him, and AJ followed.

'Shall we?'

Together, they lifted up the heavy tapestry and slipped through the small gap.

.

They came out to a completely unfamiliar hallway.

'Okay… so where are we now?' AJ murmured, gripping the strap on her satchel a little tighter.

'Maybe it's the other side of the fourth floor.' George answered uncertainly. At the sight of an older Ravenclaw girl walking towards them, Fred called out,

'Hey! What floor is this?'

The Ravenclaw girl stopped and scrutinised the first years. 'Are you lost?'

'No.' Fred answered defensively, 'We just don't know what floor we're on.'

She smirked. 'You're on the third floor. The Charms classroom is around that corner.' she added, pointing to their right.

AJ and the twins breathed a collective sigh of relief, and then froze in realisation.

George went to say something, but AJ cut him off 'Thanks. We're good now.'

The Ravenclaw girl nodded and continued on her way, muttering something that sounded like "First Years". As soon as she was out of sight, AJ and the twins stared at each other, then back at the tapestry.

'Wait- how are we on the third floor?' Fred asked.

George shrugged. 'That tapestry must be…'

'We'll figure that out later.' AJ insisted, surprising the twins by racing ahead of them down the Charms corridor. She stopped at the corner. 'Come on!' she called, 'We're already late!'

Fred and George wasted no time in catching up to her, simultaneously bursting through the open door of the Charms classroom, where the rest of their peers were seated in silence. Professor Flitwick, so small in stature that he was addressing the class atop a pile of books, stopped talking and turned to them immediately.

'Late, you three!' he squeaked.

AJ looked up at the Professor. 'Sorry sir, we got-'

'Oh look, George, we found the class!' Fred interrupted, triumphantly smiling at his twin.

'We were wondering where everyone had gotten to!' George replied with a matching smile. The class broke into laughter and whispered among themselves, Flitwick giving his own little chuckle as he waved them off in the direction of the long wooden desks.

'That's quite alright. Just don't make a habit of it! Finding your way around this castle confuses even me at the best of times, and I've been here over forty years!' he exclaimed, claiming another laugh from the class. Take your seats now.'

.

At Flitwick's command, the levitating quill next to him marked off their names on the class register at the front. AJ tried not to stare at it as she followed Fred and George towards the desks further along the classroom, where there were a few vacant spaces. The twins slid onto a high desk at the back next to Lee Jordan, who was sitting with Jon and Amanda, and Libby Cooper, a freckly girl with tortoise-shell glasses, who was also in Ravenclaw. When AJ realised their row was full, her shoulders sunk. The twins mouthed their apologies and pointed to the row in front where there was one free seat. Not wanting to miss anymore of Flitwick's introduction, AJ quickly slid into the end seat next to another Ravenclaw girl and three Hufflepuffs. The Ravenclaw beside her smiled.

'What have I missed?' AJ whispered.

'Just rollcall. Text book intro's page two.' the girl replied with a slight Cockney accent. 'I'm Debbie-Lea Sykes.' She held out her hand. 'Nice to meetcha.'

AJ shook her hand. She liked Debbie-Lea already. 'AJ. Ditto.' She got out her book and flicked to the introduction. As the morning shifted from Charms to Herbology, AJ realised very quickly that there was a lot more to magic than waving a wand and saying some odd words. But to her relief, she didn't seem far behind her friends after all. So far, so good.

* * *

Did we have to take the normal way here?' Fred whined.

'You really want to be late for Snape's first class? No thanks.' AJ replied. She and the twins had told Lee Jordan all about their little adventure before Charms over lunch. They had since made a plan of sticking together to avoid being late for their first potions double with Hufflepuff. They'd already heard the rumours about the Potions Master, most of them dissuaded by Charlie and Percy, who warned Fred and George specifically to try and behave. It was only when their brothers left that Fred and George sported matching mischievous grins.

'They did say try.'

'Doesn't mean we'll succeed.'

The twenty-so Gryffindor and Hufflepuffs gathered anxiously outside the entrance to the dungeons, waiting with baited breath to enter Snape's lair. Their chatter was soon interrupted by a blur of colour and a devious cackle. They all groaned, Nearly Headless Nick had warned them about Peeves the poltergeist.

'Ooh looky-looky here! A class of ickle firsties here for potions!' Peeves exclaimed, flying close over their heads with a maniacal whoop. The class ducked to avoid him as he swooped and whizzed in circles the corridor, blowing raspberries at the older students nearby.

'Potions with shrivelling, sad old Snape!' the poltergeist shouted as he bounced off the walls and dropped a bunch small rubber balls over their heads. There was a scramble of books and bags being raised for cover. This seemed to please Peeves even more. 'You'll be lucky! Mind you don't try his temper, he'll skin you alive, he will!'

'I'll skin you in a minute.' Fred muttered, rubbing the back of his head where he'd been hit with a stick of chalk.

'Bill never said he was this bad to first years.' George said.

Peeves continued his spontaneous assault, undeterred by the efforts of three seventh year prefects who tried to intervene. It seemed that Peeves had a never-ending arsenal appearing from his pockets and from thin air. Some of the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff boys started shouting to make him go away, but it was no use. It was only when Peeves started throwing water balloons at the walls that the real havoc started. Many of the girls screamed and ran to the other side of the corridor, still clutching their satchels as shields. AJ had joined the few (including the Fred, George and Lee) who had started throwing things back at Peeves. Pencils, blackboard clappers, bouncy rubber balls filled the air. Putting her sporting skills into practice, AJ aimed a roll of sticky-tape straight at Peeves' nose, which hit its target and knocked him backwards, gaining a cheer from the spectators of her class.

'Ha! Take that you barmy old codger!' AJ cried. But her efforts were short-lived. Out of nowhere, a balloon exploded on AJ's head, covering her russet hair with chalky blue powder. The class gasped. AJ turned on the spot, her eyes wide in horror. Peeves swooped past her and hovered threateningly above the rest of the class by the stairs, pulling faces and singing victoriously. AJ's dropped her bag and rummaged through her belongings with a look of determination. Fred and George immediately caught on and ran straight towards her with a sense of warning.

'AJ, don't!'

But it was too late. AJ aimed as hard as she could and sent her bright orange pencil-case flying towards Peeves. The poltergeist shrieked and disappeared into thin air, leaving the pencil-case to smack into the wall above the stairs. At that moment, the doorway opened followed by a swish of black robes and AJ's pencil-case bouncing off Professor Severus Snape himself.

.

The class went dead silent. If Snape's hook-nosed sneer had been unpleasant to begin with, it had just increased tenfold. His beady black eyes took in the chaos of the corridor, and the trembling group that was now his class. Silently, he picked up the offending pencil-case and read the small but unmistakable name label.

'Which one of you is Walsh?'

All twenty-one heads turned to the tiny figure with blue-stained hair standing in the middle of the hall. Fred and George shuffled together to try and block AJ from view, but she strode through their barrier towards the Potions Master. Although she hid it well, AJ suddenly felt like she was hot, cold and trembling all over. Snape's dark glare was enough to make her shrink into her oversized robes. She didn't say a word. Snape narrowed his eyes.

'Care to explain the cause of this mischief?' he ground out slowly. 'Anybody?'

No one spoke. They were saved, instead by Peeves reappearing and blowing another raspberry towards them. 'Got the better of ickle-firsties _and_ snivelling Snapey!' Peeves threw back his head and held his pointed purple hat in delight. 'Haha! Two birds with one stone!'

'Peeves, be gone with you!' Snape ordered. 'The Bloody Baron _will_ hear of this!'

And with that, Peeves disappeared down the hallway with a long, strangled gasp. Snape's attention returned immediately to AJ, who had silently picked up her bag.

'A point from Gryffindor. How disappointing.' AJ's stomach fell as fast as Snape dropped her pencil-case. 'Now stop dawdling, all of you.' With another swish of his robes, Snape turned and returned to the dungeon on the left, the rest of the students bustling in after him, giving AJ expressions on the way that varied from amused to unimpressed. A few of her fellow Gryffindors, however, congratulated her quietly.

'Nice work, AJ.'

'That was wicked!'

'Brilliant aim.'

'Not sure Snape appreciated it, though.' Lee Jordan added with a grin.

'You think?!' AJ hissed, rolling her eyes and dropping into the seat next to him. 'I'm done for.'

The dungeon was dimly lit, cold, and depressing. Once again, the class was silent as Professor Snape looked them over, his eyes glinting every so often whenever he glanced in AJ's direction. His introduction to Potions was intimidating, but the class managed to take down most of the notes he dictated. With a wave of Snape's wand, a list of instructions appeared on the blackboard, directing them how to make a simple potion that would cure boils. There was a flurry to get into groups of three and set up cauldrons. Lee had already made a trio with the twins, which left AJ looking around once again for group to join. On her other side was Harriet Belgrave-Vance from Gryffindor, and a Hufflepuff girl who looked strikingly similar to Harriet, but with dark blue eyes and frizzy dark gold hair. Thinking back from her first night at Hogwarts, AJ didn't recall Harriet mentioning a sister.

'AJ, you want to join us?' said Harriet. AJ slid her equipment towards them gratefully.

'Thanks, Harriet. And…?' she looked expectantly at the Hufflepuff girl. Harriet, as usual, answered again.

'This is my cousin, Catriona Oakwood. Cat, this is AJ, one of my Gryffindor bunkies.'

Cat smiled, her eyes travelling to AJ's blue hair. 'Hiya. You think you'll be able to get that stuff out of your hair?' she asked. Her gentle Scottish accent even sounded like Harriet's.

AJ shrugged, brushing a few specks of blue off her shoulder. 'Hope so.' In her peripheral vision, she noticed Snape watching them. 'We better get started.'

* * *

.

Later that afternoon, AJ sat down in the Great Hall, her hair still blue, and her face scrunched up in annoyance. Her head hit the table just as Harriet sat down next to her.

'Cheer up, AJ. It wasn't that bad.'

'No.' said Fred and George, sliding into the seats opposite them. 'It was worse.' They looked just as unhappy, having also lost a point each for arguing with Snape when he had told them their potion was the wrong thickness.

'You should have thrown harder, AJ.' George muttered.

AJ lifted her head slightly. 'What?'

'Your pencil-case should have knocked Snape out.' Fred continued, 'Would've saved us all this trouble.' AJ rolled her eyes and her head went back to the table-top.

'We didn't mean for Lee's hand to swell up. He's the idiot who put his finger in the cauldron.' George added. Poor Lee (who was in the bathroom trying to get a slime stain off his socks) wasn't the only one to suffer a mishap in class; a few others had miscalculated some minor details during the double period, putting Snape in a rather sour mood by the end, and giving them lots of homework.

'It's not like we threw the potion in his face and turned his hair green.' Fred exclaimed, sending a glance AJ's way. 'No offense.'

AJ shrugged, uninterested. She'd already tried getting rid of the blue powder with soap and water in the girl's bathroom. Harriet giggled; she and Cat had been there with AJ, but had only succeeded in creating lots of bubbles. She patted AJ on the shoulder and rested her head on the cover of _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_.

.

A noisy group of sixth year Gryffindors approached their end of the table, laughing and throwing the odd paper plane and piece of fruit around. Among them was Charlie Weasley. 'Why so glum, chums?' he asked. In an instant, his blue eyes went from his brother's gloomy expressions, to Harriet's afternoon nap, and then to AJ. 'What in Merlin's name happened to you lot? You've only been here a week and you've turned AJ's hair blue!'

Sitting up quickly in response, AJ blushed and put her hands in her head.

'That wasn't our fault.' George assured his brother.

Charlie gave them a look that said he didn't quite believe them. He sat down by them and poured himself some water, ready to hear the story. The twins, very enthusiastically retold the events of their first double potions. Charlie nearly choked on his drink by the time his they had finished, and his friends, who had been listening in, burst out laughing. 'You're joking, right?' Charlie coughed. 'Now _that's_ a record if I ever heard of one. With aim like that, AJ, you might make a decent Chaser one day.'

AJ scrunched up her face. 'A what?'

'A Quidditch Chaser.' he explained. 'One of the positions with lots of throwing and catching.'

'But I've never ridden a broom before.' AJ admitted. 'How am I supposed to catch a ball and ride a broom at the same time?'

'Well, you've all got your first flying lesson next week. Just focus on the actual flying for now.' He stood up to leave and addressed the twins. 'Speaking of Quidditch, Gryffindor trials are on tomorrow afternoon. Want to come?'

Fred looked hopeful. 'Are we trying out?'

Charlie snorted. 'You wish. You know first years aren't allowed to play, no matter how good they are.'

'Why's that?' Harriet piped up; keen, now that Quidditch had come into the conversation.

George pulled a face. 'Some stuffy old rule about us being too young and little and the game being too dangerous.'

'Is Quidditch dangerous?' AJ asked.

Fred nodded enthusiastically. 'It's bloody exciting. Brutal sometimes-'

'But no one's died in years.' George finished for him. Harriet and AJ exchanged worried glances. Charlie clapped his brothers over the head.

'Don't say that. You'll all find out how we do things here soon enough. I've got to go see Madam Hooch now, see you later. And stay out of trouble.'

As soon as he was gone, Fred and George made sure none of the teachers were in earshot before they continued their sport-talk.

'You'll love Quidditch.' they said to AJ determinedly.

'Best game in the world.'

AJ flicked through her Transfiguration book and smirked. 'You only say that because you don't watch football. Now let me tell you about _that_.'

* * *

...

**A/N: And I've returned. Huzzah. Sorry it's been another break; the HSC put life on hold. But ahppy days are here again! Thought I'd just shed a little more light on the minor characters of their year whose friendships with AJ and each other will develop. I've got an entire class-list of 42 students canon and OC, not all of whom will be mentioned (we don't even know who all of Harry's year are), but the important ones will continue through. Feel free to point out any usual spelling/grammar mistakes if applicable.**

**Next chapter should be up by next week, I'm having fun with it. Hope you are too.**

**G.**


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